


Undercover

by neeeeealll



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M, Undercover, nothing is ever simple, relationships, the team don't like undercover work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-20
Updated: 2014-10-04
Packaged: 2018-01-16 09:44:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 33,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1342900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neeeeealll/pseuds/neeeeealll
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The team have to go undercover to identify a threat to a school. Will the team catch the culprit or will they end up killing the students?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The beginning

Skye sat staring at her laptop waiting for Skype to bing at her letting her know that everyone was online. The flat was too quite and even playing music didn’t make her feel any better. She was used to the noise of her teammates on the bus, there was always someone around. Or just the bus making noises as it flew them to their next destination. She used to be annoyed by the constant movements and the lack of privacy on the bus, but now living on her own, she realised how much she missed it. It was so easy to just pop over to see Simmons and just have a girly chat. Or just go and annoy her SO. But here in this one bedroomed flat she had all the privacy she could ever want and it was boring.

A bing from her computer alerted her that someone had come online. Checking the screen she smiled when she saw it was Jemma. Clicking she opened up a video chat with her best friend.

“Hey Skye. Are you bored again? I thought you were excited about living on your own again for a while?” 

Skye smiled at her friend. It was amazing how easily she could read her. She had never really had friends like that before, unless you counted Miles, and Skye definitely didn’t. She found she liked it and would miss this if it ever went back to the way it was before.

“You would be too if you were on your own. At least you have Fitz. I’m stuck here all on my own and its not like I can go out. Which is weird as who doesn’t go out? People are going to start thinking I’m strange.”

“But you are strange Rookie.” Skye grimaced at Ward as he joined the conversation, obviously overhearing her conversation with Jemma.

“Robot made a funny. But seriously, people are going to start asking questions if I stay in all the time. Please can I go out? Even if it is just for a meal. I’m going out of my mind here.”

“When Coulson comes on ask I’ll ask him if we can go out. We can catch a movie as well if you like?” Ward offered. 

Skye glanced at Jemma to ensure she had just heard right. Her SO had just agreed to take her out? She knew he had changed since she got shot, seeming to not mind spending more time with her, but she thought he would have enough of her as he was taking her to and from work and saw her at work as well.

Noticing the silence and the glances between the women, Ward stated defensively,  
“He’s more likely to let you go if someone is with you. Plus everyone knows that we know each other already so we won’t compromise anything.” 

That was true. The entire team were currently undercover, pretending to only know each other slightly. They were all currently working at a school, where Shield had detected a threat. They couldn’t just send it six new people though so they had all gone in gradually, with May and Coulson going in separately, Fitzsimmons together as they could hardly be separated and it reduced the lies Simmons had to tell. Then Skye and Ward had gone in, in their case they lived separately but in their cover they knew each other, with Ward taking Skye to the school each day. They lived fairly close together as well. It was decided that Skye needed someone close by in case anything went wrong and Ward was the best person for that job. She was still recovering from being shot and this was her first mission back with the team. As they didn’t know the exact source of the threat they couldn’t know all of the danger so they had decided it was better for Ward to be near, just in case anything happened.

Unfortunately they were still no closer to finding out what the threat was. Many of the kids had high profile parents, some including Shield agents, but there were also the teachers who were experts in their fields who could be target. Or it could be that the school was known for producing some of the greatest minds in the world. There were a lot of targets, which was why they were undercover. Fitzsimmons naturally were science assistants, having been told firmly not to blow anything up. Coulson was teaching politics, which he was good at, but then you would pick up tricks when you are part of a secret organisation that had to deal with various governments. May was teaching history and also ran a self-defence class for anyone who wanted to learn. Ward was teaching English, which he was extremely good at. Skye couldn’t help be surprised even though she knew he liked to read and one of his favourite books was Pride and Prejudice. Skye’s job was to help Ward as an assistant ensuring he didn’t murder any children; she was also the IT assistant, which gave her access to other rooms. While the others could get close to the children and the staff in their departments she could see the school as a whole and go where she liked. So far though, they had come up with nothing. 

As they weren’t allowed to talk to each other more than saying hello, as they weren’t supposed to know each other, they often had these Skype conversations to find out what each member had been up to and if they had found any knew information.

Seeing the rest of the team had come online, Skye turned her thoughts back to the mission and to the job at hand. 

“Sir if it is ok Skye and I have a question to ask you at the end. Its not directly to do with the mission.” Ward began.

“That’s fine. I need to talk to the both of you anyway. Now May would you like to begin. Any knew information?

 

An hour later and the meeting were wrapping up with the team all feeling frustrated. They were no closer to understanding the threat and no one had any new information. 

Sighing Coulson drew the meeting to an end, hoping the next time they spoke someone would have found something. Waiting till the rest of the team had signed off her turned to Ward and Skye.

“So what was it you wanted to ask me?”

“Skye is getting bored staying in her flat all the time. I was wondering if it would be all right for us to go out? We were thinking about going to see a movie and grab a meal. As everyone knows we know each other it shouldn’t cause any problems.”

Coulson smiled at Skye slightly. He knew she would have a problem staying in the flat all the time and didn’t really object to her going out. 

“Actually that fits extremely well with what I was going to talk to you about anyway. The gossip in the staff room is that you are secretly going out. It’s now being bet on, with people saying they are going to look to see if they can catch you together. If it is ok with you two I suggest that you do pretend to be going out. It may provide us with new information, as it’s a way for everyone to start new conversations. But its up to you two, its your decision. All you would need to do is go out together and spend a bit more time together.”

“That’s fine with me Sir. How about you Rookie?”

“If it gets me out of the house then yes. Its fine with me too AC.”

“Well that is settled then. Enjoy your night out. Try not to go too mad in the mean time Skye.”

 

The next morning Skye joined Ward in the car, handing him a coffee, which had become part of their morning ritual. 

“Morning, Robot.”

“Morning Rookie. You’re in a good mood this morning.”

“Yeah because I can finally escape that flat. So when are we going out. I don’t think I can spend much longer all alone in that flat.”

“Whenever you want. Skye……… are you sure you ok with Coulson’s plan? With us pretending to date, I mean?”

“Yeah. It’s fine. Are you ok? Would you rather not pretend to go out with me?” Skye wasn’t sure why but her heart sank at the thought. She wanted him to be ok with this. Secretly she was looking forward to it, not that she was going to let her SO know that. 

“Yeah. I’m fine with it but I didn’t want you to be uncomfortable or be forced into anything.”

“I’m fine Grant. Seriously. But it was sweet that you are concerned.”

Smiling slightly as she saw Ward blush, she grabbed her bag as he pulled the car into the car park. On a whim borne of mischief she reached over and placed a kiss on his cheek. 

Grinning as she entered the school as realised how much fun she could have with this undercover. She was getting to pretend to be going out with Grant Ward. The man was so hot yet he didn’t even know it. They only problem she could see were keeping him from finding out how she really felt about him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Once again I don’t own Agents of SHIELD or any of the characters. I don’t have a beta reader so if there are any mistakes I’m sorry. More notes at the end of the chapter.*

Skye mingled with the rest of the class, taking care to not make any movements and be spotted. She was on an important mission and being spotted would cause it to be a failure. Some of the kids looked at her strangely but thankfully didn’t raise attention to her. Slouching down in her seat at the back, she couldn’t help but smile as she saw that she hadn’t been noticed. This was going to be good.

It had started earlier when she had entered the office after leaving a dumbstruck Ward. As always there were a list of jobs posted that the rest of the faculty needing doing that day. These were just the basics and often they got called to ‘emergency’ jobs throughout the day. Often these ‘emergency’ jobs consisted of a teacher not being able to turn a computer on, however one time it they hadn’t even made it as far as the computer, being unable to turn on the lights in the classroom. But never mind it was interesting and gave Skye the ability to go around the school when the rest of the team couldn’t. Glancing at the jobs she had been given for the day she couldn’t help but smile. She had also noticed her co-worker giving her looks as she picked up the list. She knew why. They had given her a job with her SO, and were clearly waiting to see how she would react to it. She guessed Coulson was right then, they did ship her and her robot. Now that was weird. She had shipped so many people before but never been on the other end of the stick. It was just weird. 

Logging on to her computer she pulled up the job for Ward wondering what he could need a tech assistant for. The man hated technology, especially when it came to his books. He refused to buy a tablet, even when she pointed out that he would never run out of books again, he could just download more of them when he had finished. But no, he liked the feeling of a book in his hands. She understood that, but when he was being grumpy because he had nothing left to read, she just wanted to take the book from him and hit him around the head with it. Then she wondered if he would still like the feeling of having an actual book!

But she was getting off topic. What did he need tech for? Reading through the request she could help the smile breaking out on her face. She knew that the rest of the office was watching her but this was just too good. She had to see this. If she went to the classroom now she could beat Ward and hide at the back. There was no way she was going to let him throw her out, and he would if he saw her, she just had to see this.

Well he hadn’t noticed her so far. The lesson was 10 minutes in and he hadn’t thrown her out. Which was strange for someone who is a trained observer. Skye was not going to complain though. This was fantastic. Ward was giving a lesson on Pride and Prejudice, which was clearly one of his favourite books. Describing the story he was becoming more and more animated, much to the delight of his class. 

“Do you think the relationship between Mr Darcy and Elizabeth is portrayed accurately sir? I mean he goes from hating her to being completely in love with her. Do you think that is possible?” a guy with cute curly hair just in front of Skye asked.

“Yes I do, Robin. I’m sure that everyone will have had the experience of meeting someone and not liking them based off assumptions you make. Then as you get to know them and understand them you begin to like them. Who is to say that it then can’t turn to love?”

“Sounds like your speaking from experience sir. Is that how you fell in love?” Came the voice of a girl at the front of the class, to much up raw from the rest of the class.

“Settle down.” Ward replied ignoring the question, but couldn’t disguise the slight reddening of his cheeks.

In front of Skye Robin whispered to his friend beside him, obviously noticing Ward’s blush,  
“Oh yeah. That is definitely what happened to him. Look at his reaction. I wonder who it is.”

“Anyway. I wanted to show you an adaption of one particular part of the story. This scene does not appear in the book, but I think it shows an interesting perspective on the characters and what they are thinking. At this point Mr Darcy, who is played by Colin Firth, has declared his feelings to Elizabeth and has written the letter to her explaining his actions. He has now headed back to Pemberley not knowing that Elizabeth is visiting the house with her aunt and uncle. Now watch this scene.”

He then proceeded to show one of the more famous scenes in TV history, where Mr Darcy jumps in the lake and then comes out dripping to bump into Elizabeth. 

“Now the reason I showed you this is because I find it interesting that he is beginning to regret what he has written to Elizabeth here. He has begun to realise that his letter was mean spirited and wished he had not sent it. Adding in this scene, the director wanted to show the change that the character has gone through. He wants to wash away all he had done and come out a new man, acting in a different way. By literally jumping in the lake, he washes away everything he did in the past and becomes a new person. This is then seen when he then meets Elizabeth and her family, acting differently to what Elizabeth is used to, which is then remarked upon later in the book. The reason I showed you this is that I thought this would stick with you more than me just lecturing you on it.”

Laughing the rest of the class murmured their agreement at that. Skye couldn’t help but grin at the comment. Who knew Ward would look that in depth into one little scene in a show. It wasn’t even mentioned in the book but now he had pointed it out to her she would never be able to watch that part the same way again. He had managed to make her think about things she would try to forget. How she wished she could do the same thing as Mr Darcy and jump in a lake, washing away all her regrets and emerge a different and better person. 

“Have you wanted to do that Sir?” It was once again the girl at the front from before. Now she was looking at Ward with more respect.

“Yes I have Jessica unfortunately.”

“Was it over a girl?”

“Actually yes it was. I hadn’t behaved very well towards her and I later regretted it. But that is enough about me. I want you all to select a part of the book and make notes on how you would show that in a film or TV show and why.” 

Skye sat stunned for a second with that revelation, wondering who the girl could be and feeling a bit jealous. Whoever she was she had to be pretty special to get to Ward like that. Sighing she glanced up checking where he was and wondered if she could sneak out without him noticing her. She had got what she had come for. She could now blackmail him whenever she wanted with the knowledge that he had watched Pride and Prejudice. She had got what she wanted so why did she feel sad?

Standing up she slowly made her way towards the door. Her SO appeared to busy messing with the computer to be paying any attention to her. Just before she reached it, the door opened with the principal Mr Hill walking in. Unfortunately at the exact moment one of the class had decided they were fed up with the book. Throwing it away towards the bin, they hadn’t taken into consideration that anyone would be stood in front of it. So instead of dropping into the bin safely it flew straight into Skye as she stood beside the door waiting to be able to leave. It hit her straight in the stomach, which normally wouldn’t have been a problem, but she had recently been shot in the stomach and still had the stiches from the wounds. Gasping, the shock of the hit sent her tumbling to the floor. 

*********************************************************************************************

 

“Skye!” Cried Ward, completely forgetting that he was supposed to use her cover name when they were in class. Rushing over to her, he quickly started examining her, only just stopping himself from pulling up her top to see if she had torn any stiches. He realised at the last minute that revealing the wounds wouldn’t be a good idea, as they would have to explain how she had got them.

“Are you alright?” He asked, frantically scanning her face.

Still trying to catch her breath, it was all she could do to nod. The pain was bringing tears to her eyes. There was no way she could speak for a bit without wanting to cry out in pain. 

“Of course she will be alright Mr Johnson. A book only hit Ms Morris. I’m sure it has knocked the wind out of her and may have gotten a bruise. But it is nothing serious. Now whoever threw that is getting a detention. This is why we don’t throw things.” 

Listening to Mr Hill, Ward had to concede that normally he would be right. But he didn’t know that Skye was still recovering from major surgery. Even if she wasn’t he would have still reacted the same way. No matter how hard he tried to ignore it her cared about her and hated her to be hurt in anyway. She was his Rookie. He never wanted her to be hurt. 

Seeing that there was no way she was going to be able to move anytime soon, he gently placed his arms around her and lifted her from the floor. Striding over his desk he carefully placed her on his chair, watching to make sure that he didn’t knock her stomach. 

“Sit there until you get your breath back.” He said for the benefit for all those around who were clearly listening. There was only 5 minutes till the end of the class, then they would have the privacy needed so he could make sure she was all right. God it was going to be a long 5 minutes.

 

*********************************************************************************************

Skye sat still, allowing Ward to finish checking her stiches. As soon as the room was emptied he had lifted her shirt and began checking to make sure she was all right. If only he was as eager to lift her shirt up at other times. He wouldn’t even listen to her when she told him that she was ok. Who knew what the class or Mr Hill were going to be saying. Ward had completely lost it when she had got hit. She knew he still blamed himself for her getting shot but she never expected him to react like that. Well there was going to be some more gossip going around the school. Guess them pretending to date was a good thing, otherwise they were going to have to come up with a pretty good explain for Ward’s reaction, which would not be easy. So dating it was then.

Having assured himself that she was fine, Ward eventually took a step away from her. She was glad, it was beginning to get very cold having her top rolled up. She was glad to be able to cover herself again.

“Do you think he did it on purpose?”

“What?” She had no idea what he was talking about.

“Ryan. The boy who threw the book that hit you. Do you think he threw it deliberately?”

“Why would he do that? Why would you think that?”

“We are looking for a threat Skye. It could be anyone. Including him. That book hit you exactly where you had been injured.”

“So? It was just accident. What does hitting me with a book do?”

“Finds out your weaknesses. If he were the reason we are here he would want to test people. He may even know about us.”

Standing, Skye walked over to him and placed a hand over his mouth. She didn’t want to hear anymore. It was bad enough thinking about people committing the horrible crimes that she had seen while being with Shield, but a kid. She didn’t even want to think about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there you go. Hope you liked it. The stuff with the teachers came from a personal experience I had but with my lecturers. Very few of them can use the computers and once I had to turn on the lights for them. Thank you to everyone who had reviewed that last chapter. Also thank you to them for some of the ideas in this chapter. I tried to incorporate them in a way that fits where the story is going. Pride and Prejudice is one of my favourite books and I just love the adaption with Colin Firth. The next update may take a little while longer as I’m going away for a bit. Hopefully it will be up sometime next week though. ☺


	3. Chapter 3

Ward had to admit it wasn’t a hard task pretending to be dating Skye. Admittedly initially they hadn’t got along but now they were quiet happy to spend time together. In fact he had found himself starting to put time aside to spend with her. She managed to bring out the best in everyone and he found he liked himself more when he was around her. It didn’t mean that she didn’t still frustrate him. This morning was evidence of that. If he had known she was in the class with him he would have been more careful what he said. That class were smart easily noticing he was talking about a girl. The scene he had caused when she had fallen had probably confirmed to them that it was Skye he had been talking about. He couldn’t really deny that anymore, not even to himself. He couldn’t believe that he had put the operation at risk. Nobody knew here that Skye had been shot, as it would be too complicated to explain. However, as soon as he had seen her hurt, he had panicked and just reacted. He never panicked. Skye just brought that out him as well. Thankfully she was fine, just sore. 

He knew Skye didn’t believe him about Ryan. But something didn’t seem right about that boy. He just happened to hit Skye where she had been hurt. That didn’t seem right. The way he had thrown it was wrong as well. There was no way it was ever going to go into the bin. Skye thought he was being overly suspicious but there was something strange about that boy. He was going to get Coulson to keep a closer eye on him.

But for now he was going to enjoy spending time with Skye. It was rare that they got some alone time that wasn’t disturbed by the team. They had already seen Frozen, which Skye had picked and were now heading to a restaurant for a meal. They had bumped into a number of staff and pupils from the school so no doubt it would be around the school that they were dating by the morning. Well Coulson wanted them to pretend to be dating, he was getting his wish. To be fair it probably had been confirmed by his actions this morning. But never mind. Part of him wished this was real though. Although there were no strict rules about dating within the team, he didn’t think Coulson would approve. He thought of Skye as his daughter and he held the right to frighten away any boyfriends. He personally didn’t want to find out Coulson’s plans to terrorise any boys that thought they were good enough for Skye. If he was going to ask her out he was going to make sure Coulson didn’t know for a very long time. Not that he knew how to ask her out. He wasn’t very good with words and feels, though she was beginning to help him improve. That didn’t mean he knew how to ask her if they could do this for real sometime. Normally he would just go and ask one of the team for help, but he wasn’t sure how they would react. Plus he liked staying alive. Everyone was very protective of Skye. So for now he was just going to enjoy this fake date. It was all he had for now.

**************************************************

Ward hummed to himself as he let himself back into the flat he was currently staying in. He had enjoyed tonight. The meal was fun, with Skye being her normal bubbly self. They had decided to have Mexican. She had managed to get the waiter to give them hats to wear, insisting Ward wore his before taking loads of pictures that he knew he would regret later. She would probably use them for blackmail later or just show the team to make them laugh. Probably both actually.

He sighed. He should check the computer to see if there were any new leads in the case. He also wanted to add a note to the rest of the team to keep an eye on Ryan. They had likely heard an account of what happened today, so he should tell them what actually had gone on. Gossip had a way of changing key facts of events. He just didn’t want to do it. It would mean going back to work. He had enjoyed not having to think the worst in people. Although tonight was technically part of their undercover it hadn’t felt like work. It had felt like relaxing. It made him appreciate that he needed to relax more. Oh well. He made himself a promise to take more time off once this mission was finished, until then work beckoned.

Heading towards his laptop he was surprised to hear his phone ringing. Skye. Funny he had only just dropped her off. Maybe she had left something in the car.

“Skye?”

“Ward! Come quick. Someone has been in my flat!”

*******************************************  
Ward quickly ran to her flat and entered to see it trashed. Skye was stood near the doorway looking over the mess. Seeing him enter she flung her arms around his neck. Sobbing into his chest she tried to explain what had happened but it was impossible to understand. Rocking her gently Ward glanced around the room taking in another woman who was stood beside the sofa. He was just about to ask who she was when she spoke.

“I’m Mrs Morse. I live downstairs. I heard the commotion and came up to check on Skye. I came in and found the flat like this and Skye on the floor. She woke up when I came in and insisted on calling you. I’ve already called the police.”

Ward smiled his thanks at her before turning his attention to the woman in his arms. He didn’t know what it was about her but she appeared to attract attention, most of it bad. Brushing her hair away he saw the bump that had been raised on her head. It was nothing serious but it was going to give her one hell of a headache. 

Once he was sure she was safe and just shaken he had a better look around the flat. It was clear that the break in was related to the case. The flat had been professionally searched. The only think that was left was Skye’s laptop which they had clearly being trying to break the encryption on. Skye had clearly come back in time to catch them attempting that and hence the bump on her head. Coulson was going to have a fit when he heard about this. There was no way Skye was going to be safe on her own. He knew the team was going to insist on moving her once they had been informed. He intended to move her anyway. He wasn’t going to let her out of his sight. Until this mission was finished she was staying with him. He could keep her safe if she was with him.

***************************************

Ward carefully helped Skye into his flat, noticing how she was shivering. He knew it was just shock but he needed to keep an eye on her. They had stayed at hers until the police had come and taken notes on what had happened. They had secured her flat then headed back here. Skye had wanted to get away from the flat as soon as possible. He couldn’t blame her for that. Plus it meant he didn’t have to argue with her to get her to stay with him.

“You should have a shower. It will make you feel better. So will a change of clothes.” Ward told her.

She simply nodded so he escorted her to the bathroom. The flat had two, but he led her to the one in his bedroom, which was nicer. Putting her bag down on the bed he went and switched on the shower so it could warm. He was going to leave her and give her some space when she spoke.

“Will you stay with me? Please? I don’t want to be on my own.”

When he nodded she took his hand and pulled him into the bathroom. He sat on the toilet and turned to face the door so he could give her privacy. He didn’t mind staying with her if she didn’t want to be on her own. He didn’t want to make her uncomfortable while he was there though. When he didn’t hear her change he turned slightly, checking she was ok. She was stood just looking at the shower. He muttered her name in question.

“I don’t think I can go in. I don’t know why.”

Moving gradually so not to startle her he stood beside her. 

“I’ll stay with you.” He promised. 

She nodded but made no move to undress. Reaching out he slowly began to undo her shirt, keeping his eyes on his face to ensure that she didn’t want him to stop. Once he had removed her top layers of clothing, leaving her just in underwear, he removed his clothes. Once he was in just his boxers he picked her up and carried her into the shower. Holding her under the water, he cautiously washed her hair cleaning away the blood from the bump on her head. 

Once she was clean he led her out and wrapped her in a towel. Glancing at her face he saw that she was no more relaxed. 

“Are you all right changing yourself?” He asked.

“Yes. Thank you Ward. For everything. I think I’m just going to change and go to bed.”

“OK. Well good night.”

He watched her slowly walk away before grabbing a towel to dry himself. He hadn’t expected to shower with Skye, but she had needed him. He hoped nobody was watching the flat. If the team found out about this he didn’t want to have to explain it. It was totally innocent but the team tended to jump to conclusions around Skye. She needed him then. There was no way he was going to take advantage of her when she was vulnerable.

Sighing he decided it was time to go to bed as well. 

*******************************************

It was two in the morning when he woke up having heard a noise. He was reaching for his gun when his bedroom door opened. 

“Ward.”

“Skye. What’s up?”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t sleep.”

“It’s fine. You just startled me.” 

He moved to replace his gun on the table beside his bed. As he did he felt the bed shift as Skye got into it. She moved over to his side before curling up beside him. He reached out and lifted her so she was leaning against his chest. Pressing a soft kiss against her head, he whispered,

“Go to sleep. I’m here and I’m not going anywhere.”

He felt her nod her head against his chest in agreement, before snuggling in closer. He listened to her breathing becoming more regular before allowing sleep to claim him. It was one of the best nights sleep he had ever had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * There you go. I know this is very skyeward centric but I wanted to set things up for the next part of the story. The next chapter will show more of what the threat is and why they are undercover. Also Skye and Ward’s relationship will continue to develop. Please leave reviews as they make my day ☺ *


	4. Chapter 4

Skye woke up hearing a musical noise and buried her head deeper into the pillow. 

“Sorry. I didn’t want to wake you but we need to check in with the team. They need to know about what happened yesterday if they already don’t. I would have just let you sleep but they will want to see you are ok.” Ward spoke.

Turning she saw him holding his open laptop and two mugs that smelled like coffee.

“It’s OK. Is that coffee?” She replied.

He smiled at her before replying,

“Yeah I thought we could do with some. I also thought that we could Skype them from here if that is ok with you?”

Skye took the mug and nodded her agreement. She could detect a slight nervousness underlying his question. She supposed it was because they had slept in the same bed last night. It wouldn’t go down well with the team if they found out about that. Not that she was going to tell them. Everyone would jump to the wrong conclusions and she liked Ward being alive. 

She watched as he set up the Skype session before snuggling closer to him. If anyone asked it was so the camera could see them both. That was totally the reason. Glancing up at her SO she wondered how she could thank him for last night. After what he had done a simple thank you wasn’t enough. But she would have to think about that later as the rest of the team were online.

The Skype conversation didn’t start well with everyone trying to talk at the same time. Skye and Ward just looked at each other. Clearly the team had heard about yesterday. Eventually Coulson stepped in. 

“OK enough. Ward why don’t you tell us what happened yesterday, instead of us all trying to talk over the top of each other.” 

Ward then proceeded to tell them everything that happened yesterday, including his suspicions about Ryan. The only part he left out was him helping her shower and the fact that they had ended up in the same bed last night. She was grateful about that. She didn’t want the team to know how shaken up she had been. 

After assuring the team that she was fine and was able to go to work this morning they moved on to talking more about the case. Coulson filled in the rest of the team.

“So Shield have finally managed to find out exactly what the threat is even if we don’t know who is carrying it out. As far as we know it is going to be a cyber attack. It is believed that a message sent will open a video, which seems harmless enough. However, when played the video shows images and noises that overwhelm the senses and if not stopped can lead to death. Unfortunately, we still don’t know if someone at school is building this or if someone there is a target. Interestingly enough Ryan who you were talking about earlier has some background in computers. Not only is he a genius but his father also runs a computer company so he could either be the target or the culprit.”

Skye just looked at Ward. She still didn’t believe Ryan was to blame but he clearly had issues with him. She glared at him before continuing listening to Coulson.

“Skye you will need to lead on this as you our computer expert. I’m not happy with you being alone any more so you will stay with Ward from now on understand? We’ll just use the fact that you are supposed to be dating to explain that.” 

She simply nodded in response. She felt safe with Ward anyway and wasn’t going to complain about being closer to him. 

“Good now we need you to put a bug in the system so we can see what is happening at the school.”

“That’s fine AC. But I can’t do that without getting caught, I need the school to pretty much be empty or at least nobody on the computers.”

“That’s fine Skye. Fitzsimmons are going to provide a distraction and get the school evacuated.”

“We get to blow something up?” Squealed Fitzsimmons at exactly the same time. 

Skye felt Ward sigh beside her. She knew what he was thinking. They were both way too eager about that.

“Only because we need a distraction.” Answered May who had stayed fairly quiet throughout the conversation. 

Oh great. They were going to let Fitzsimmons blow something up as a distraction. Skye loved the science twins but at times they were scary. What could possibly go wrong?

***********************************************

Skye stood hovering near the science block. They had agreed a time for the distraction, with Fitzsimmons being severely warned to keep the explosion small. They didn’t want the bomb squad turning up and complicating matters. She could see them arguing about what chemicals they should use. It was very cute. They were like an old married couple. She always wondered if there was something more going on between them but never wanted to ask. Shield had strange policies about fraternisation that made no sense. Certain people could date and others couldn’t. It was strange and hard to understand. She didn’t want to ask if they were together unless they were keeping it a secret because they weren’t allowed to date. If she asked them and then got them caught she would feel so guilty. So no matter how much she wanted to know she wouldn’t ask them. They would make a totally cut couple though. They already had a ship name that they both answered to.

She glanced at her watch. She knew she could only have a short amount of time while the school was evacuating to breech the computer system. Though the team didn’t like it she had to do this alone. Ward couldn’t stay with her as he was a teacher so had to help with the evacuation. The others weren’t supposed to know Skye so if they got caught it would cause more problems than Skye being on her own. That was why she was currently hiding on a staff corridor that was barely used.

 

Boom! Skye had to give it to Fitzsimmons when they caused a distraction they did a good job. The whole building had shook with the explosion and alarms had started going immediately. She could hear people start to evacuate, with teachers calling out instructions. She gave it a minute before heading into the nearest classroom. She needed to give it enough time to ensure everyone was off the network so they didn’t see what she was doing. It wouldn’t take her long to plant the bug; she had done this sort of thing before. It felt like she had being doing this her whole life. 

She quickly inserted her USB into the computer where she had a saved version of the bug she wanted to upload. Two minutes later and the bug was in place. The team now had access to everyone’s computer logs and could see exactly what people were doing on the network. Smiling slightly she left the classroom to head out to the rest of the school to avoid suspicion. The team had nothing to worry about. Computers were easy. It was people that were hard.

*****************************************************

The rest of the day had passed without incident. She explosion was put down to an accident and everyone in the school had gone back to normal. It was now the end of the day and Skye was nearly ready to go home. She only had a few more things to finish before she could leave. She had already bumped into Ward, who had told her he need to do a few things after school so was it ok if he came back to pick her up? She had agreed instantly knowing those few things involved picking up weapons and talking to Coulson about the mission. She would be fine here. It wasn’t like she was on her own. She had noticed May hanging around, keeping an eye on her. She could help herself watch Ward move towards his car though. That man was way to handsome. Even if he was scowling at someone. Surprise surprise it was Ryan. He really didn’t like him. She watched until he got into his car and began to drive off.

She was so busy thinking about her SO that she didn’t notice the person in front of her until she bumped into them.

“I’m so sorry…. Oh its you, Mrs Morse. I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“Not to worry my dear. I suppose you were thinking about that handsome man of yours. I thought you knew I worked here. I’m one of the cleaners.”

Skye hadn’t known that which would earn her a lecture from Ward. She was supposed to know about the people that lived around her. She apologised to her again before heading back towards the office. She wanted to finish before Ward got back so they could go straight home. 

BANG! 

A large explosion coming from the road made her turn quickly. All she could see was a huge fireball approximately where Ward’s car should have been.

“GRANT!!”

*************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there it is. Sorry for leaving it on a cliffhanger. I know I am an evil person. Also I’ve seen the promo for the next episode and spent the entire day crying and screaming. I cannot wait for the next episode. If anyone else wants to gush about it with me message me on here or on tumblr. My username is the same as here. ☺


	5. Chapter 5

“GRANT!!”

May heard the scream and knew immediately it was Skye. She had never hurt a scream so filled with agony. She didn’t even think about but ran over to the young woman. Skye has kneeling on the floor looking towards the road. All that could be seen was a fire and the remains of a car. May knew that Ward had just left; she was to watch over Skye discretely while he was gone. 

Oh God. Please don’t let that be his car. She wanted to go and investigate but knew that the young woman needed her more first. 

“Skye.” 

She spoke quietly so she didn’t startle the young woman. Slowly she sat beside her on the ground and pulled her into her arms. She didn’t think Skye was even aware that she was there. She couldn’t think how to comfort the young woman other than rocking her backwards and forwards. She knew that the hacker had feelings for her SO but she hadn’t realised how strong they were. God she hoped that wasn’t Ward’s car. She needed to get answers; it was the only way to help Skye. But she couldn’t leave her on her own now. She needed family with her.

Pulling out her phone she scrolled through to the number she needed. 

“I need you by the car park now. I don’t care about the undercover, get here now.”

Hanging up she paid attention to the young woman sobbing in her arms. Skye was clinging to her arm, holding it like a life raft. Pulling her closer she pressed a gentle kiss to Skye’s head. She could here Skye muttering Grant’s name over and over. 

“I will find out what happened Skye I promise. It may not even be Grant’s car.” 

May tried to talk to Skye but she wasn’t even sure she was listening. 

Fitzsimmons appeared in front of her, staring in horror at the remains of the car on the road.

“Look after Skye. We don’t know what happened yet. Take her back home until I get back to you. I’m going to go and find out what happened. Stay with her.”

May spoke to both of them as she stood, picking Skye up. She passed her to the science duo, pressing a final kiss to her head. Knowing she had left Skye in good hands, she strode towards the flaming wreck, intent on finding out what had happened. Somebody had hurt her team. She really wanted to hurt someone right now so God help anyone that got in her way.

**************************************************

Skye still couldn’t believe, didn’t want to believe it was Grant in the car. But she knew it was his car. It was exactly where his car should be. There was very little traffic on the road. It could only be him.

She began to sob again, unable to stop herself. She was no regretting everything she had never said to him. She wanted him back. She could feel Fitz and Simmons sit on either side of her, trying to comfort her. There wasn’t much they could do. They had been with her since they had brought here. She had been able to hear them talking, always in the background. She hadn’t been able to concentrate on what they were saying. 

She knew they had brought her back to the flat Ward was living in. She could see all the things they had left this morning. They had been in a rush this morning so had left stuff all across the flat. Shirts were on the chairs when they had been discarded after being rejected by Ward. Shoes of hers were scattered over the floor from where she had been searching for her comfortable shoes. DVDs were lying all over the coffee table; they had been trying to decide what to watch tonight. They had both wanted a night in and had decided to have takeaway as well so they could just relax. They were never going to be able to do that.

She heard the door open and close but couldn’t face looking up. She knew it was May coming to tell her what she already knew. He was dead. 

“Fitzsimmons.” Spoke May. She felt them both move from beside her. She obviously wanted to tell her the news without them there. She was surprised when she heard May talk again. 

“Come on Coulson needs us.”

Maybe they needed them to understand what had happened to him. She heard the door shut again. Leaving her on her own. She thought she heard movement in front of her but that must be wishful thinking. She would swear she had just heard him say her name. After everything she had gone through she was now loosing her mind!

“Skye. Look up at me.” 

She was totally loosing her mind. Gentle hands lifted her head so she was looking up. Grant. No it couldn’t be him. She moved back against the sofa, as far away as she could.

“Skye. It’s really me. Please Rookie. I’m fine.” 

She couldn’t believe it was him. He was stood in front of the sofa, sitting back on his heels so he was nearer her height. He began speaking again when he saw she didn’t believe him.

“When we first brought you on the plane I wasn’t sure that it would work but you changed my mind. You keep beating me at battleship and tease me about the books I read. You offered me a drink when Coulson’s friend attacked the bus. Then you saved my life by stopping me falling out the hole in the bus.”

He was going to continue talking but Skye was now certain it was him. She launched herself off the sofa and on to him. She didn’t mean to but she needed to touch him, it allowed her to see he was actually there. She didn’t trust her eyes anymore. They had told her she was dead. 

Pulling back to see him properly she put her hands on his face. He lent into her touch. She began to trace his face, memorising it. He watched her carefully, allowing her to touch him. She realised what she was doing and pulled back. He reached for her hand, gently kissing it before placing it over his heart. She could feel it beneath her fingers. The final proof he was alive and with her. 

She wanted to ask how he survived but couldn’t speak right now. It would break the moment. Keeping her eyes on his she gently pressed her other hand against his chest. When he didn’t object she began to trace the planes of it. 

Reaching up to his shoulder she saw he was for once at her height. She couldn’t deny her feelings any longer. She now knew what it felt like to loose him and not have told him about how she felt. Leaning up she pressed her lips to his. He encircled her in his arms pulling her closer. 

After a few minutes they broke apart to catch their breath. Smiling slightly at her he moved back slightly and removed his top. Reaching for her hand again he left it just slightly above his chest. Reaching out she closed the distance between them touching his bare skin. Smiling at her he leaned back into kiss her once again.

****************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise the next chapter will explain what happened. I just wanted a sort of happy chapter, especially after the story I wrote earlier and that last episode. I now can’t wait until Wednesday (I live in the UK so have to wait till Wednesday morning to watch it). I hope you like protective May.


	6. Chapter 6

Skye and Ward lay on the sofa too tired to move. Their clothes lay on the floor in piles where they had dropped them. Skye was beginning to get cold so snuggled closer to Grant and was glad when he wrapped his arms around her. 

“So are you ever going to explain how you survived?”

“Sure. I was going to tell you earlier but you distracted me. I have little things around the car to see if anything has been disturbed, one of them was gone. Then when I got in the car the accelerator felt strange, so I let the car run up to the lights in a slow gear and got out. I then looked under the car with a mirror I keep for stuff like that and saw the bomb. I then moved to safety, as I didn’t know when it was going to blow. Thankfully there was nobody around. I then went to hide, as I knew the team would look after you. May found me later and she had made sure I was safe to come out of hiding. She then gave me a lift back here.”

“You do know I’m not letting you out of my sight till this mission is over?”

He laughed. “I was going to say the same to you. It could be hard to explain to the school though.”

“Leave that to me.”

“Gladly. Now shall we go to bed? As much as I love lying here with you we should probably get some sleep and the sofa isn’t really that comfy.”

Skye grinned mischievously and jumped off Ward and the sofa.

“You’ll have to catch me first.”

Ward simply smiled. 

“Game on.” He replied before chasing after her.

***************************************************

Ward joined May the next morning after receive a message that she had news for him. He had managed to persuade Skye to stay with Coulson. She had eventually agreed with him that he couldn’t get into too much trouble if he was with May.

He had joined her in a computer room in the school before most staff had arrived. She looked angrier than he had ever seen her. 

“Are you all right?” 

He thought he had been quiet when walking in, but he knew by now that trying to sneak up on her just didn’t happen. He simply nodded, not used to sharing his feelings with anyone but Skye.

“I thought it was best to leave you alone with Skye. She was distraught and only seeing you alive was going to make that better.”

“Thank you for that. It took me a little while to convince her that I was actually alive and she wasn’t imagining things.”

He saw May tense at his words, her hands clenching the desk. He knew how she felt. He wasn’t too bothered that somebody had tried to kill him, as far as he was concerned it was part of job. What made him angry was the thought of Skye’s break down and that she may have been in the car and he might not have been able to protect her.

“When you go after the person who bombed the car I want in.”  
He looked at her questioningly.

“They tried to take out a member of my team. That does not happen. Plus they made Skye very upset. They need to pay for that.”

He simply nodded before turning to the computer.

“What did you want to show me?”

“This.”

She pulled up some video, which Ward instantly recognised as the car park. He could see the kids leaving which May fast-forwarded through. Stopping just before the time when he got in the car she stopped and paused the video. In it was a very recognisable face. Ryan.

“Do you think it was him?” Coulson asked having come up behind them, while they watched the video. “Before you ask Skye is fine and is with Fitzsimmons helping them set up some tech experiment for the lesson today.”

“I just find it suspicious that he was in the area just before the bomb went off. We don’t have a clear shot of Ward’s car but as he was already on our radar I find it interesting.” Replied May. 

Ward had to agree with her. He knew Skye thought he was being overly distrustful but there was something about that kid. His instincts told him that Ryan was up to something.

“I agree it is strange. Skye said the only other person in the area was a cleaner. We have found out some more information about Ryan. His father’s company is undergoing some problems and has had to lay some people off. Not only that but the family have reduced their spending. Apparently Ryan hasn’t taken that too well. We looked more into his background and found that he could be several grades ahead but his parents wanted him to stay with friends. Not only that but he also has the computer skills to pull off the computer virus. I think we are going to have to move him to the top of the suspect list.” Explained Coulson.

Ward agreed with him. Skye might not believe Ryan was bad but then she saw the good in everyone. He loved that about her but it wasn’t helpful when trying track down who was targeting them.

*********************************************

Skye was once again trying to hide at the back of the classroom, though this time it was from the class not Ward. She had to say it was an eye opener. All they were talking about was them. Apparently it somebody had seen Skye going into Ward’s house and then not leave till morning. Now all the class were talking about was how much sex they would have had. She couldn’t help but blush at the thought of the rest of the team hearing that and think of what they did last night. Oh well what they didn’t know was true couldn’t hurt them. 

Glancing down at her notes she wondered what Ward was going to be teaching them today. Although he was an English teacher he also had to include a little bit of history as background to the books. Today was one of those lessons. She couldn’t help choke back a laugh when she read what the lesson was on today. There was no way the class were going to settle down in this class. Oh this was going to be fun!

She watched as Ward brought the class to a beginning and introduced the subject. They were still on Pride and Prejudice but where no talking about the attitudes at the time, including their attitude to sex. When he explained this, the class became a buzz with noise and she caught the look he sent her. Only if you knew him well would you be able to notice his embarrassment. She simply grinned back. There was no way she was getting involved in this one. 

Once again the class had decided it was time to embarrass Ward. They had clearly elected a leader, who quickly began asking questions.

“Sir, what you are basically saying is that it was a lot more hidden. For example today it is perfectly ok for a woman to stay over at a man’s house even if they are known to be dating. If they get seen at it is known what they were up to it isn’t considered a problem. But back then it would be completely scandalous. Even within marriage it was a taboo subject.”

If Ward noticed the subtle hint towards them he ignored it. 

“Yes, exactly.”

He then went on to explain literature at the time, and how anything mentioning sex was ignored by high society. He then linked it to Victorian times and how prude they were in public but in private they were more adventurous. It was also brought up where they would have sex.

“Why would anyone want to have sex on a sofa? Any way it happens, it is going to be uncomfortable for someone.” Muttered one girl.

It was clear that Ward had overheard her too by the stunned look on his face and the appealing look he sent to Skye. She simply shook her head and sent him a message straight to his computer in front of him.

You could always tell them because it is fun and sometimes you just can’t get to the bedroom.

His reaction was priceless, with a sudden flush of colour filling his face. The rest of the class saw his look toward her and turned as one to face her. Smiling she waved at the class before speaking.

“Hey. I heard in this class you learnt about some good books so I thought I would come and join you. Anything beats lying on a sofa.”

*****************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is the next chapter. Hope this explains well enough how Ward escaped. The next chapter will involve more of Fitzsimmons and Intel gathering on Ryan, with a bit more undercover work.


	7. Chapter 7

After an embarrassing couple of lessons Ward was glad to join the rest of the team for a discussion. All of his classes appeared to know that Skye had stayed at his last night and were all making veiled comments about it. Skye apparently was delighted by this, seemingly wanting to make comments that just made things worse. He couldn’t believe her comment about making it to the bedroom or lying on the sofa. She just seemed to be out to make him blush. He couldn’t decide whether he wanted to kill her or kiss her senseless. He was thinking the second one, but first they needed to find out what was so important with the team.

“OK. We need to keep this short, as we don’t have long to put this plan into motion. I’ve decided it’s time we find out more about Ryan and his family. Luckily for us the family are throwing a party tonight, but Ryan won’t be there. I find this strange as the company is struggling. But as Ryan won’t be there it enables us to go in and try and find out more information. Skye, Ward you will be going undercover as a couple, you run a company that creates custom made websites for clients. Fitzsimmons you will be going undercover as staff for the part. Simmons try not to lie, and don’t make up more stories.” 

“But sir…” Jemma interrupted Coulson.

“No. No stories. You are just working the part for some extra money. Both of your jobs are to find a computer room for Skye, as you’ll have more freedom of movement. Later in the part you’ll create a distraction to allow Skye and Ward time to get into the room and find the information we need. No explosions this time. The local police and fire department are already suspicious we don’t want to give them any more opportunity to investigate us. May and I will keep an eye from here and provide back up if it is needed. It’s a fancy dress gala so your outfits have been delivered to your houses. Good luck and make sure you keep your coms on.”

*****************************************************************

Fitzsimmons arrived at the venue of the party and couldn’t help but gasp. It was a beautiful house. The marble entryway gleamed and was surrounded by marble pillars that currently had different coloured satin bows tied around them, forming a lined walkway to a set of open doors. There led through into what clearly was the ballroom. It was currently a flurry of activity with things being set up for later. 

Noticing the two scientist gaping at the sites one of the staff moved over to them,

“Are you some of the staff for tonight?”

“Yes.”

“Good go upstairs first door on your right. Someone there will find a change of clothes for you and tell you what to do tonight.”

Following the direction they found the room mentioned and were given a set of clothes each and pushed into a changing area. Changing they both exited and gawked at what the other was wearing. Fitz was in a traditional butlers outfit including a tailcoat. Simmons had a black dress with a white apron and matching cap for her hair. Both felt like they had gone back in time.

“Yeah I know they are terrible. However, the master likes the staff to stand out especially when the guests are in fancy dress. It stops embarrassment for the guests.” Spoke the staff member from before noticing their horror at the outfits. 

“We need help setting up so if you would go downstairs straight away.” 

An hour later they were finally together again having been separated to carry out jobs. Simmons had been sent to help in the kitchen, while Fitz set up the ballroom. 

“Find anything?” He asked.

“No. This is the first time I’ve got out of the kitchen. How about you?”

“No to a computer but I think I know how to create a distraction.” 

At her enquiring look he nodded towards the ballroom. Understanding what he was on about, she objected.

“Oh Fitz.”

“I’m sorry. It’s the only thing I can think of that won’t destroy our cover.”

*********************************************************

Thinking this through further Fitz had to agree with Simmons. It was a bad idea. But the only other thing he could do was bump into somebody and spill stuff over them. But that would attract more attention to them than they wanted. It needed to appear something accidental. 

Which was why he was now sneaking back into the ballroom, where preparations had been finished. He had thought he had seen something earlier that, if he used a little something he had created, would cause enough of a distraction and get Skye and Ward upstairs. However, since he had being setting up something else had been added to the room. Actually he thought this might actually help. Especially if Skye or Ward are near it. 

Grinning he moved quickly, wanting to place the instrument of his plan in place before he got caught. It only took two minutes to place it. When he triggered the machine, it would cause a chain of events to occur that would cause the distraction but still look like an accident. 

He quickly hurried back to the kitchen to tell Jemma.

“I’ve done it. Had to make a slight change to the plan though.”

“Good because I’ve found another problem.”

**********************************************************

Ward was sitting waiting on Skye finishing getting ready. As Coulson had promised their costumes had been delivered to the flat. Skye was extremely happy with this and had squealed in delight when she had seen hers. The theme for tonight was fairy tales and fantasy. Which is why they were going as characters from Disney films. Skye had been delighted when she had found her costume was Mulan’s. As she said, she was a kick-ass woman who didn’t need any man to save her. Ward had to admit it was very her and matched her personality, like Mulan Skye would do anything to protect her family. 

He was going as Captain Li Shang from Mulan. The person that Mulan saved, helped become less awkward and who fell in love with Mulan. Skye said it was perfect for him as Shang was an amazing warrior, who was extremely patriotic but loyal to his soldiers. Ward wondered what exactly had caused Coulson to pick these outfits. He was beginning to suspect that his boss knew his relationship with his rookie had gone past the trainee/trainer stage. 

“What do you think?” She queried, moving to stand in front of him.

She was wearing the green dress from the film, with her long brown hair loose down her back. Simple make up completed the look. 

“You look amazing.”

“You don’t look too bad yourself. You should dress up as Disney characters more often.” She teased.

“Only in your dreams. Here, you need your earpiece.”

“Oh but my dreams are so much more fun. Plus they involve you in a lot less clothes.”  
She grinned at him, taking the offered earpiece before moving towards the door.

“Are you coming? I think we have a party to attend.”

**********************************************************

“Ok we are in.” Reported Ward. The party was in full swing with people wearing a variety of costumes. Some people had hardly done anything for the gala, simply wearing a costume, others had gone all out. He had already passed one guy who was dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow, not only did he had the costume and the hair, but he also had the tattoos and the walk down. It was like Johnny Depp had walked into the gala. He had done a double take to make sure it wasn’t Johnny Depp but on closer inspection it was possible to see that the hair was a wig. He was glad of that. If it had actually been the actor, he wasn’t sure how we would have stopped Skye fan girling and asking for an autograph. 

The room was totally crowded, with people eating, drinking and laughing. One side of the room held several tables filled with food. The centrepiece was an ice sculpture of a butterfly that looked so realistic he thought it was about to take flight. Either side of that were two towers of wineglasses. It was the usual sort of thing that you would see at this sort of thing, but he thought there was something strange about it. He had seen plenty of them when he had been undercover before; this one seemed to be leaning at an odd angle. But it could just be the angle he was standing at.

“Fitzsimmons do we have a location?”

“Yes. Straight upstairs last door on the right. But the stairs are monitored by cameras you can’t sneak up there.” Came Fitz’s voice in his ear.

“But don’t worry we have a plan to get around that problem, which includes are distraction. You just need to stand close to the food table beside the ice sculpture.”

Both Skye and Ward moved carefully through the crowd to the table pretending to look at the food.

“We are here.” Reported Ward.

“Ok distraction coming up soon.” 

“We’re sorry Skye.” Piped up Simmons.

Before they could ask what that was about, the crowd had gone silent turning to the couple stood on a raised platform. It was Ryan’s parents.

“Welcome. I’m glad you could all come tonight. Most of you know that my company has being having a tough time of it lately so are probably wondering why I still threw this party. It is because it has always enabled us to raise so much money in the past. Though we are having a rough time we must still remember that there are people who are a lot worse off than we are. We still want to help these people so continued throwing our annual gala so that we can raise more money for those who need it.” 

Ryan’s father spoke, holding his head high while admitting the problems he was having. It was a brave thing to do. Ward found himself admiring the man, especially as he was doing it to raise money for charity.

Before the speech could continue there was a small smash from behind Ward. He turned in time to see the two wineglass towers begin to tumble. Before he could react, they smashed into the butterfly, sending ice and melted water straight over Skye who was stood in front of it. She let out a squeak in surprise as the water soaked her. Apart from being wet and slightly shock she seemed fine. Ward now knew why Simmons had apologised, guessing this was part of the plan.

All heads in the room turned to them as he checked that no ice was sticking to Skye or had hurt her. By time he had finished his inspection Ryan’s mum was in front of them. 

“Oh my dear, are you all right?”

Skye nodded in shock. Ward put his arm around her, not sure how much was real and how much she was acting.

“Oh come with me and we’ll get you sorted out.”

The crowd parted as they were led from the ballroom to one of the rooms upstairs. Fitzsimmons plan had worked, now just to get rid of their hostess. 

“Do you need anything? Are you hurt?”

“No I’m fine thank you. I just need to dry off.” Skye replied smiling faintly at the hovering woman.

“Ok I’ll leave you here to dry off then. Just shout if you need anything. I’m sorry about that. I don’t know what happened.”

Ward suspected a certain scientist and some sort of machine he had built but kept his mouth shut. Skye waved off the woman’s worries and watched her leave. Once she was gone Skye turned to Ward,

“Ready? There are no camera’s up here.” 

“Sure are you feeling ok? I can imagine it was a bit of a shock.”

“I’m fine Grant. Let’s just get this done before she comes back to check on us.”

He let Skye lead him from the room and to the computer room they had been told about. Once there she pulled out a USB she had hidden down the front of her dress. She quickly copied the entire system onto it. She had decided earlier that they wouldn’t have time to go through everything at the party so she would make a copy then go through it later. Once she was done they both re-entered the bedroom from before so Skye could dry her dress. Well so Ward could dry her dress, as she couldn’t reach the back of it. They both knew that they wouldn’t be able to escape as quickly as they had hoped, as all eyes would now be on them. 

“Come on Robot you owe me a dance.”

********************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you like this. I had fun writing this part. I thought about having them dress up as Flynn and Rapunzel from Tangled but I loved Mulan more. I liked having Fitz being a bit of an evil genius in this and causing chaos. Let me know what you think. ☺


	8. Chapter 8

“So what information did we get last night?” Coulson inquired.

“I’m still sorting through some of it, but we have found some interesting information. The company has many projects on the go. Many of them could be what we are looking for, if it weren’t for the fact that they were all shut down when the company went into financial trouble. All of the staff on these projects were let go because it was no longer viable to keep them running. A lot of the data is about threats from former staff members. A Mrs Burch who was very vocal against the company, issuing threats, some specifically against Ryan. I wondered if she could be the cause of all of this but I have yet to track her down. She’s disappeared entirely.” Reported Skye.

“You think that the threat may be to Ryan?” Questioned Ward.

“I’m still not sure. When I was looking at the files I found that someone had accessed them recently. I tracked the IP address that accessed the files back to Ryan’s computer. He could just be snooping or it could be for other reasons.”

“OK. We’d better gather more information then. Skye, try and plant a bug on him during the lesson. We need to find out more information. It looks like either the threat is coming from Ryan or is going to be against him.” Ordered Coulson. 

The rest of the team nodded in agreement. Coulson turned to the scientists.

“Now we can talk about the distraction you two created last night. When I said cause a distraction I did not mean destroy hundreds of glasses and an ice sculpture. You caused thousands of pounds worth of damage and could have hurt your team.”

“But Sir, it was the only way we could cause the distraction needed and manage to get Skye and Ward past the cameras on the stairs.” Protested Simmons.

“I can understand that. Next time give people a little more warning. But you can never use your inventions like that again. I’m well aware of the fact that they hadn’t been tested before. It could have gone badly wrong. Please only use inventions that have been tested.” 

Coulson looked at the two scientists until he saw their acquisition. Skye moved slightly till she was stood beside Fitz. When Coulson was looking the other way she clipped him around the head.

“It wasn’t tested?”

“It was a perfectly sound idea. You were in no danger.” Fitz disputed.

“That is not the point, Leopold and you know it.”

“I’m sorry. It was the only thing I could think of to do.”

Putting his hand over Skye’s mouth to stop the rant that was about to happen, Ward replied,

“Next time just give us an idea of what is going to happen.”

*************************************************  
Skye and Ward had agreed on a plan to get her close to Ryan during the lesson. Like most of the schoolchildren he kept his laptop on his desk during lessons. If she got close to him while the lesson was on-going it should be relatively simple to plant the bug. The only problem was going to be explaining her presence in the lesson again. The class wasn’t stupid, they were going to think something was up if she was in the lesson again. That meant they had to come up with an excuse. 

Today’s lesson was on Shakespeare, specifically on Much Ado About Nothing. Although there were lots of adaptions of the play Ward wanted to actually act out the play, with members of the class playing some of the parts. He had already managed to cast some of the parts but no one had wanted to play Beatrice or Benedict. Therefore they agreed that her cover story was that he had asked her to help out and play Beatrice while he played Benedict. 

She was sat on the desk watching while Ward got the class ready for the play. Ryan wasn’t one of the class playing a part but was in the front row of the watching class. This would make her job easier. The class had voted on which scenes they wanted performed for them, which included the scenes where Beatrice and Benedict overheard others discussing their love. Skye had to wonder how much of that choice was due to the fact that Ward and her were playing those characters. But never mind. The first scene they were acting out didn’t involve her so she moved towards the rest of the class. It gave her the perfect opportunity. No one questioned her standing beside Ryan’s desk as they all watched the scene before them. Everyone was so busy watching the actors that they didn’t see her plant the bug on the laptop. She grinned in triumph.

“Ok so the next scenes are where the family attempt to set up both Beatrice and Benedict. They knowingly speak of how they are loved by the other while knowingly being overheard. Both already love the other but will not admit it to themselves.”

Skye suddenly became aware of the class’s attention being divided between her and Ward. Looked like she was right in her prediction.

***********************************************

The class was finally over and Skye was relieved it was over. They had done practically every scene with Beatrice and Benedict apart from the end scene. Class had just finished before Ward had to kiss her in front of the class. She liked kissing Ward but she didn’t really want to kiss him with 30 sets of eyes watching her. 

She was currently sat at his desk watching her laptop that showed the feed from the bug she had planted. Ryan hadn’t done anything unusual or that provided any information so far. At least the bug was working. 

She felt Ward come up behind her, placing a gently kiss on her neck. Turning towards him she smiled slightly. A knock at the door caused her to shift slightly. Stood there was Mrs Morse, looking into the room slightly awkwardly.

“I’m sorry to bother you two but I need to clean the room.”

“That’s fine. I’ll be back in moment.” Ward opened the room as he directly the last comment at Skye.

“I hope you don’t mind me saying my dear but that is a lovely man. I assume you are staying with him at the moment.”

“No he is lovely. Yes. I’m sorry I was just afraid after being attacked.” Skye replied cautiously. 

“I totally understand that. I have replaced the locks so if you want to come back it is more secure.”

“Thank you.”

A beeping drew Skye’s attention back to the computer. It was the alert to tell her that Ryan had left the school. If he was planning to do anything it wasn’t going to happen here. They might as well move: there was no long any need for them to be here today. 

***********************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again thank you to Amaya for reading through this. Things will be come clearer in the next chapter. I’m sorry for the slower updates. Hopefully things will be faster now as I’m no longer feeling poorly or trying to finish my dissertation. Thank you for the reviews. ☺


	9. Chapter 9

“So did everyone get the packages I sent them?” Skye questioned, looking at the team on the computer. She had sent them all a package, as she couldn’t pass them anything when they were at the school. She had realised that if they were going to face an attack they should probably be prepared. Currently they weren’t, so she had gone on a little shopping trip with Ward. They hadn’t had exactly what she had wanted so she had to improvise but everything should work.

She watched as the team opened their packages, removing the items with some confusion. Everyone was holding a pair of dark glasses and a pair of earplugs. She had tried to match them to each person, which seemed to confuse the team more. May’s were simply black and stylish whereas Coulson was left holding a pair of Captain America glasses. Simmons’ had images of the TARDIS, with Fitz’s having monkeys on them. She couldn’t find any that exactly matched Ward’s personality, they didn’t have any with books on, therefore she had gone to the other extreme and bought him some bright orange ones. Hers were a matching pair, just in purple.

“Skye, why are we currently holding novelty glasses and earplugs?” Ward asked, looking at the items in horror.

“I was thinking about the threat we were facing and if it happens how we could stop it. If we try to stop it happening we would also be incapacitated, as our bodies would be overloaded. Therefore, the glasses and earplugs. Glasses stop the light, earplugs block the noise. It won’t be effective for very long but they should help us enough to shut down the virus. I had to adapt them all slightly but they should provide some protection.”

“Good idea. I was wondering how we could cope if the virus is released.” Praised Coulson.  
“Though why did we all get novelty glasses? Surely black would have done the same job.”

“There weren’t enough for everybody and I didn’t think it was fair to only make some people wear novelty ones. Plus I wanted to see my SO wear the orange ones.”

Coulson and Fitz quickly tried to prevent themselves laughing at that statement, which wasn’t helped by the look Ward was currently giving Skye. Jemma didn’t even bother preventing her laughter and even May looked amused at the statement.

“Ok then. Thanks to Skye we are prepared if the virus goes live. If there’s nothing else, I suggest we all enjoy the rest of our evening. Ward, you are not allowed to kill Skye once we have disconnected.”

Coulson looked at the rest of the team for confirmation before signing off. The team quickly signed off after him, wanting to enjoy their free time as much as possible. 

“Seriously, orange? You couldn’t have picked any other colour?”

“Would you’ve preferred pink?”

“On second thoughts orange is fine. But why did you want to see me in orange?”

“All you ever wear is black or white. It’s boring. I wanted you to wear some colour for once.”

“I like simple clothes and colours.”  
“Yes, but there is nothing wrong with a bit of colour. I should have just bought you the pink ones with sparkles on.”

“Oh, thank god you didn’t.”

“Can’t deal with a bit of pink and glitter?”

“No but then I would’ve had nothing to go with them. At least with orange I can match them to my tie.” Ward grinned at her mischievously.

“You don’t have an orange tie!” Skye exclaimed.

“Maybe you just haven’t seen it.” He teased back. Moving quickly he stood from the table they had sat at to use the computer before heading towards the bedroom. There was no way he had a tie that colour. Laughing, Skye quickly got up and followed him running into the bedroom before he could shut the door. He was already over by the wardrobe rummaging through it. Still laughing she quickly jumped on his back so she could see into the wardrobe. He wasn’t going to hide anything from her.

******************************************************

“Everything OK?” inquired Ward as he placed a cup of coffee down beside her. This morning she was working in his office so as not to draw attention to herself with the class again. Staff were beginning to get suspicious of the time they spent together so it was better for her to stay away from the classroom. Working in his office gave her the privacy she needed to watch Ryan’s movements without getting caught, and meant it was easy for Ward to keep in touch with her. As it was currently break time he had come to check in on how she was doing and bring her a much-needed drink.

“Yeah. Ryan is just acting strange. It currently isn’t anything serious but I’m going to keep an eye on it. Thanks for the drink.”

She smiled at him and was surprised to see the frown on his face. 

“Ward?” 

He didn’t answer her so she checked on Ryan. He was currently stood out in the yard and as there was still 10 minutes left of the break she doubted he would be moving anywhere quickly. Spinning so she could face him head on she spoke again,

“Grant? What is wrong?”

“I don’t want you coming with me when we eventually take down whoever is behind this.”

“What? Why?”

“You said yourself that if the virus is sent it will play noise and light that will injure people. Even with the precautions you have taken it will still hurt anyone near it.”

“I know that. But why…”

“I can’t watch you get hurt. Not again. It was bad enough after you got shot. I can’t let that happen again. If I was with you the last time I might have prevented you getting shot. I’m not making the same mistake again.”

“Grant, you can’t keep blaming yourself for that. I knew the risks when I went in and I still did it. I’m going with you this time. You need someone who understands computers to disable the virus. Besides two of us are more likely to be able to stop it than just one of us.”

She watched as he took in what she had just said. She knew he was protective; it was one of the things she loved about him. She watched as he became more resigned to the fact she was going. He may want to protect her but he wasn’t going to wrap her up in cotton wool. She had known the job was dangerous when she took it.

“Why did you have such a good argument?” 

“Because I’m right and you know it.” She smiled and lent in and gave him a gentle kiss. 

“I promise I’ll be careful.” She whispered. 

He nodded at her before leaning in and pressing another kiss to her lips. Before anything could go any further a bleeping from her computer demanded her attention. Ryan was moving away from the yard and appeared to be heading for the basement. Why would he be going there? He was supposed to have science after the break, Fitzsimmons were going to keep an eye on him. Glancing at Ward who was also looking at her computer, they both headed out of the room and headed in the direction Ryan was going. 

Reaching the area where Ryan had headed into Skye quickly hid her laptop and put on the glasses and earplugs. She didn’t want to risk anything, especially when Ryan was behaving strangely. Ward had done the same, and he used hand signals to say he was going to enter the door where Ryan had gone through.

Creeping through the door they entered what looked like an ordinary basement, filled with unused desks and computers that the school had. A flashing light drew their attention to an area further down. Staying behind Ward she followed him to the area. The flashing light and noise that filled the room indicated that the virus had been released. Hopefully they could stop it before anyone got hurt. 

It was possible to see the computer with the virus on within the flashing lights. It was surrounded by desks pilled up, waiting to be used in the classrooms above. Skye felt Ward freeze and peered around him to see what had caused his reaction. 

“No.” She whispered in shock.

**************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is just one more chapter left of this undercover but I am thinking of keeping it going with a new mission. Let me know what you think. Once again big thank you to Amaya for correcting my mistakes. Any left are my fault.


	10. Chapter 10

Skye stared in shock. It wasn’t the scene in front of her that surprised her, but who was there. At the computer she could see Ryan, recognisable as his head was leaning back. He was clearly out of it and had a small trickle of blood coming from his nose. He needed help and soon, otherwise he wasn’t going to make it out of here. What concerned Skye more was the person who was currently holding a gun on her and Ward. Mr Hill the principal. How was he involved? He was also wearing earplugs and glasses but seemed to be less affected by the noise and light than they were. He had obviously prepared for this situation. 

All of a sudden the noise and light cut off. Skye glanced around in confusion before focusing again on the man in front of them. Ward shifted his position slightly to keep his body between them. 

“Drop it.” Ordered Mr Hill. “Drop it or I start the virus again. You will collapse before I do and then poor Ryan will be dead.”

She saw Ward hesitate for a second before dropping the ICER and kicking it towards the principal. With her hand pressed against his back she could feel his muscles tense and knew he was planning something. Something that was probably stupid and heroic. Mr Hill noticed some small movement and commented:

“Oh, I wouldn’t, Mr Johnson. Or is that even your name? One wrong move, and the lovely lady behind you will be nursing another gunshot injury.”

‘What?’ thought Skye. ‘How does he know I was shot before?’ 

There was no way from the angle Mr Hill was stood at that he could hit her, not with Ward stood in front of her. Looking around to see where the danger was coming from, she saw the person moving towards them before Ward did. From that angle she would be hit if they shot. Even though she barely knew them she still felt betrayed. Maybe if she reasoned with her she could get them out of this.

“Mrs Morse. Why are you doing this? Why are you working for him?”

“Oh you have got it wrong, dearie. I don’t work for him. He works for me. Now put your hands on his sides where I can see them. You put your hands on your head.”

Skye slipped her hands onto Ward’s sides while he interlocked his hands on his head. She was still trying to process what she had been told. She didn’t understand why this was happening. Mrs Morse had seemed so nice. 

Once she was sure that her orders had been obeyed Mrs Morse moved over to take Ryan’s pulse. 

“Still alive. Good.”

“Are you sure about this? Shouldn’t we tie them up?”

“No Dennis. Bonds can be escaped. This way if he wants to try anything he first has to break out of the girl’s hold. It would cost him precious seconds and leave her vulnerable. You’ve seen them interact. You know he won’t do that.”

Skye felt Ward tense knowing that Mrs Morse had hit the nail on the head. There was nothing he could do without the other two having time to react. There were shelves beside them that could provide some cover if shooting started but then Ryan would be left unprotected. Colour was slowly draining from his face making the red of the blood stand out even more. He needed a hospital fast.

“Why?” Skye asked again, needing to understand.

“Because I can. The world is changing and so are its weapons. Many people will pay millions for what I’ve created.” Stated Mrs Morse. 

“But why attack Ryan?”

“I needed someone to test the weapon on. It provided a fantastic demonstration for my buyers – in fact, they’re all bidding now. Besides, it was an opportunity to get revenge.”

Suddenly it made sense to Skye. No wonder she couldn’t find Mrs Burch: she was standing right in front of her.

“You’re Mrs Burch.”

“Oh, you have done your research. Yes, that was my name when I was previously married. When I was let go by Ryan’s father, my husband decided he could do better with another woman and left. I then returned to my maiden name. I took the job here for money while I created my virus. I met Dennis while I was here, and he agreed to help me.”

‘Wow, that woman is a piece of work.’ Thought Skye. ‘Yes she had a tough time but this is going to extremes.’ 

“You were the one who attacked Skye?” Questioned Ward, sounding angry. He had been quiet while the exchange had been taking place. Skye hoped he was thinking of a way to get them out of here.

“No. I let Dennis here do that. There was a chance I might be spotted. I always thought there was something strange the way the flat was let out all of a sudden. So I decided to have a look around. Unfortunately she came back so we resorted to a secondary plan. You never even blinked when I told you there must have been a break in. When she was unconscious I noticed the wound on her stomach. I know a gunshot wound when I see one. After that I kept a closer eye on you. I have to admit I planted the bomb in your car. I still wasn’t sure about you so it was better to be safe than sorry. I still don’t know how you escaped. But I can figure that out later.”

Skye watched as the woman turned her attention back to her phone leaving Dennis to keep an eye on them. She could feel Ward tense up beneath her as the conversation had continued. He was probably beating himself up for not noticing what has happening earlier. She expected him to calm down once he got his anger under control. Instead he seemed to get tenser and stretched his upper body higher. What was he doing? He shifted slightly so Skye was pressed more firmly up against his back. She could feel all the muscles in his back and wait? What was that? 

Under the pretence of pressing her face into his back she quickly glanced down at the waistband of Ward’s trousers. There, with his shirt pulled taught against his body, it was possible to see the outline of a gun. Of course he had another one on him. 

Skye quickly glanced at the two holding them captive. She didn’t want to put Ryan at risk. Mrs Morse was still messing on her phone but she had knocked Ryan’s chair slightly so he would be out of any line of fire. Dennis was still pointing the gun at them, but his attention was more on Ward than her. Slowly she slipped her hand behind Ward’s back and eased the gun out of his waistband. She had only one shot to get this right. She hoped she had finally learned the difference between the safety release and magazine release. Taking a deep breath she shifted so she had a clear shot and fired at Dennis. 

Unfortunately, he chose the second she fired to shift slightly, causing the shot to miss him by inches. That was when chaos began. Ward turned as soon as the shot was fired, grabbing Skye and shoving her behind one set of shelves before diving behind the other set. Mrs Morse turned and began firing at where they had previously been stood. Skye didn’t dare try and fire back at them, as she didn’t know where they had gone. Plus she really didn’t want to get shot again. She glanced over at Ward, considering throwing the gun to him, as he was a much better shot when she saw him lifting up his trouser leg. What was he doing?

She watched as pulled out a smaller gun he had hidden strapped to his ankle. How many guns did that man hide on his body? She watched as he readied himself. Glancing over at her he used hand signals to indicate that she should stay hidden. He then quickly darted out and fired two shots. Silence fell. 

Skye waited for a few seconds before she risked peaking around the shelf. Ward was stood over the unconscious bodies of Dennis and Mrs Morse. He had hit both of them with the ICER, taking them down. While he was restraining them in case the effects of the ICER wore off quickly, she grabbed the phone Mrs Morse had dropped and headed over to Ryan. She quickly called for an ambulance as she checked his pulse. It was weak but still there. After ensuring medical help was on the way she called Coulson to tell him what had happened.

************************************

There had been a flurry of activity as the team and paramedics arrived at the same time. Ryan was quickly carried off to hospital to be checked, leaving the team to deal with their prisoners. Coulson was overseeing their transfer into police custody while May dealt with the school. They all agreed to meet up at Ward’s house for food and to share what had happened. 

Two hours later they were all full of pizza and had been told about what happened down in the basement. 

“Well done you two. You saved Ryan’s life. He is expected to make a full recovery according to the doctors. I found out how he was lured down to the basement. Apparently the principal called him and ordered Ryan to follow him.” Explained Coulson. 

“I’m glad he is going to be alright. Did we ever find out why he was acting suspiciously?” Asked Skye.

Coulson laughed, surprising the team.

“Yeah we did. Apparently he was doing some investigating of his own: he was curious about your relationship.” He laughed looking at Skye and Ward. 

“I guess you two were convincing then.” Laughed Fitz.

“Evidently.” Skye replied, trying not to look too guilty.

“Why were you carrying so many guns?” Jemma had been wondering about that since she was told what happened.

“I like to be prepared.” Replied Ward with a straight face.

“Yeah, cause you can never have too many guns.” Teased Skye. 

“Anyway, it was a job well done. Now, everyone back to your homes. We all need to pack up as I’m expecting everyone back on the bus by tomorrow afternoon.” Coulson dragged the conversation back to the original topic.

Skye watched as everyone packed up and headed out. She was going to miss this place. She loved living on the bus but it was nice living somewhere with a bit more privacy. You tended to live on top of each other on the bus. She turned and saw Ward looking at her. It was almost as if he could read her mind and felt the same way. 

“So how many guns do you have hidden on you?” She queried more to break the tension than actual curiosity.

“A few.” He replied moving closer to her.

“That’s not very specific. But there are only so many places you can hide them I suppose.”

“Why don’t you find out?” he invited.

Skye looked at him and began scanning his body. That she could do. Once they left this place they would be back with the team, who could walk in on them at any moment. Why not have some fun while they could? With a grin she moved towards him and pulled off his shirt so she could begin to search his body for weapons. 

********************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is the final chapter of this part of undercover. I will be posting more chapters to this with a new mission. The next mission will include a few new people. Let me know if there is somewhere you want the team to go undercover. However it will be a little bit long until I update with it as I need to plan out the story and I have exams soon. Sorry. Hope you like this anyway. Thank you for all the reviews and comments.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new mission and new team members.

Two weeks after the last mission Coulson called the team together again. They had all been enjoying a break after the last undercover. It had taken a lot out of them, especially Skye and Ward who had been the main targets. They had stopped in Florida much to Skye’s delight. She had always wanted to go to the theme parks and as they had some free time she now had the chance. They sit all slept on the Bus but were free to do whatever they wanted as long as they kept their phones on in case a new mission came up. For two weeks they had all relaxed, enjoying the sun. Although they were free to do what ever they wanted they still spent a lot of time together. Naturally Fitz and Simmons spent a lot of time together but also Skye and Simmons found plenty of time shopping, leaving the boys to their own devices. Often when this happened Fitz and Ward would end up playing games that turned into one big competition with accusations of cheating. One time Fitz even managed to convince Ward to go with him to the zoo, Fitz had spent the entire time with the monkeys leaving Ward to play with a bunch of puppies that had just been born. 

When the call came in from Coulson Skye wasn’t really surprised, they rarely went a couple of days without a mission so having two weeks was a luxury. She knew it was coming to an end but it didn’t mean she wasn’t annoyed. 

“Skye, we have a mission.” He reported when she eventually managed to answer her phone.

“Sure A.C. We’ll be back ASAP.”

“We?”

“I’ll bring the Robot.”

“You’re with Ward?” She could hear the surprise in his voice.

“Yeah. Apparently it is the perfect time to learn a new skill. Surfing is something I need to know according to him.”

This wasn’t a complete lie. He had been teaching her how to surf, though that wasn’t the main purpose of the trips to the beach. Here they could be alone and anonymous, just another couple spending time on the beach. They hadn’t told the team about their relationship, just wanting to keep it between them for a little bit longer. It didn’t help that the rules about relationships were murky. They didn’t want to risk their professional or personal relationship. 

After a quick bye to Coulson, Skye turned to see Ward already packing up their things.

“We’re needed back on the bus.”

“I guessed.”

“Coulson thinks you’re teaching me surfing.”

“So I heard. No doubt I’ll get a lecture about giving working you while we’re on a break.”

“Coulson is very protective.”

“I can totally understand that. Plus after that mission you needed a break. Besides I enjoyed teaching you how to surf.”

“You just enjoyed watching me fall into the water.”

“True.”

He grinned when she reached out and punched him on the arm. 

“Come on let’s get back to the Bus and let Coulson see that I haven’t been training you too hard.”

**************************************************

They had got back to the Bus to find that they were still waiting on Fitzsimmons, who had been at the zoo when they got the call. Taking advantage of the extra time they had, both Skye and Ward showered and changed before meeting the rest of the team. As soon as Fitzsimmons were on board May took off. They had a long flight a head of them so the sooner they started the better. Once the plane was at a suitable altitude May set the autopilot and joined the rest of them. Now they could have the briefing. 

“Ok. Before we begin, let me introduce you to two people who will be joining us for this mission. This is Clint and Natasha, also known as Hawkeye and Black Widow. They are along for this mission, as Fury believes their skills will be needed, plus they have a personal interest in it.

We will once again be going undercover, sorry May, this time at a leisure camp in England. Specifically in the Peak District.”

“A very beautiful area.” Interjected Jemma.

“You can tell everyone about it later. Anyway the resort we’re going to be working at has seen a few of their residents disappear including Dr Eric Selvig, which is why Shield is getting involved. The last time he disappeared it didn’t go well for Shield. We’ll be going undercover as staff. Ward you and Natasha will be dance instructors, you are also a couple so will be sharing a cabin. Skye, you are tech support and you’re in a relationship with Clint, who is the archery teacher. Fitzsimmons you’ll be together with Tripp, with Simmons and Trip being medical and Fitz you are part of the engineering team. May, you and I are also sharing with both of us being chefs. We all know each other in passing but otherwise we keep interaction to a minimum. Any questions?”

“Why the pairings sir?” Queried Ward.

“After the problems last time we wanted a specialist with every team. Plus your file notes you were trained how to dance and Clint can’t. So you were paired with Natasha. Any other questions.” He looked round the team seeing the shaking of heads.

“Good. Here is all the information you need on your aliases. Do what you need to prepare. It’s a long flight. Simmons I’m sure can provide information about the Peak District.”

He smiled at Simmons who nodded her agreement.

***************************************************

Skye finished reading her file and then wandered to find Ward. It didn’t really surprise her that he was training. It was all he did when not on missions, that or reading. She couldn’t complain it kept him in good shape. 

“I know you’re there.” He commented without breaking his rhythm of punching. 

“I was enjoying the view.”

He stopped punching and gave her grin that he seemed to keep just for her. It lit up his whole face. Grabbing a towel, he unwrapped his hands and headed over to sit beside her on the steps.

“You alright?”

“Yeah. Just thinking about the mission.”

“You’ll be safe with Hawkeye you know. He won’t let anything happen to you.”

“I know. But he isn’t you.”

He leant and bopped her shoulder gently. 

“I’ll still be around if you need me. So will the rest of the team.”

“There is one advantage of this mission though.”

“Oh?”

“I get to see you dance. I bet you do the Robot?”

Skye could prevent the scream as he started to tickle her after that comment. He was so much more playful when they were on their own. 

“What? You know that is what you will do. It’s in your programming.”

She jumped up and moved away from him while saying that knowing how he would react. He didn’t disappoint, standing up and stalking towards her. She quickly moved behind the punch bag using it as protection.

“It won’t protect you.” He growled playful.

He launched himself at her but she anticipated his move and side stepped him, leaving him grasping at air. Laughing she ran to the other side of the mats to watch what he would do next. She knew she would win this battle but that wasn’t the point of it. Getting him to lighten up had been an aim of hers for a while, something she had finally managed while in Florida. As they were about to put themselves into a dangerous situation she wanted to do something that would take their minds of it. Plus teasing him was fun.

After a few more minutes of him chasing her around the training area he eventually caught her and held her up against the wall.

“You’ve caught me so now what are you going to do?”

“I’m sure I can think of something.” He murmured, before lowering his lips to hers.

*************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So they have a new mission and some new teammates. Next time we’ll see them arrive at the camp and a slight complication. Sorry it took a little while to update this. Thankfully exams are done this next week so I should have a bit more time to write.


	12. Chapter 12

They had landed at a nearby airport before splitting up into their teams. They didn’t want people to realise that they knew each other. Besides, the journey to the camp gave them more time to get to know each other and make sure that they knew the stories. For Skye and Clint this was especially important, as they knew very little about each other. Ward and Nat had worked together before, plus were used to going undercover. For Skye this was still a relatively new mission, only having gone undercover twice before. Neither time had gone well: one time she had to jump in a pool, and the last time she had somebody trying to kill her. It was also the first time she had gone on a mission with someone who wasn’t part of the team. She knew Clint was good and Coulson trusted him with his life, but it didn’t change the fact that she knew very little about him. Fan sites only gave you some information and didn’t always give you the correct information. But how do you start a conversation like that? Hey, I heard about what happened in New York; sorry you got controlled by an Asgardian sorcerer?

“Nervous?” His voice made her jump, as they had been quiet since they got in the car twenty minutes ago.

“Why do you ask?”

“You’re tapping your fingers against your leg. The speed has been getting faster the longer we’ve been driving.”

How had he noticed that? He had been concentrating on driving. The roads here in England were very different to America and took some getting used to.

“I’m used to watching different things at the same time. You have to when on the missions me and Nat go on.” Clearly he could interpret her facial expressions as well. That was weird. 

“It’ll be ok you know. Coulson told me about what happened last time. I know you’re used to working with Ward, but I won’t let anything happen to you either. I promised him and Coulson I’d keep an eye on you.”

“Thanks. It’s just strange. I’m so used to being with the team. Plus I know very little about you.”

“There isn’t much to tell. I love arrows and dogs and that’s about it.”

“There has to be more than that.”

“Not really. I spend most of my time working for Shield.”

“You have to have a life outside of it.”

“Not much. I do like movies.”

“Sounds good. At least we can watch some of those in the evenings. Do you like Disney movies?”

They spent the rest of the journey discussing the best Disney films. It turns out Clint was a kid at heart; with all the horrible things he saw in his job they gave him a way to escape and imagine that everything could be sorted simply. It was an enjoyable way to spend the journey, and good to talk to someone about them for once. Ward frequently refused to watch them as he thought they were only for children, preferring to read his books. 

It was easy to tell when they got close to their destination. Instead of fields either side of the road they entered a forest, the road they were driving down become a single track. Skye couldn’t help a gasp as they enter the camp. It was beautiful. She had never been anywhere like this before. It was what she imagined it would be like to go camping at home, something that she had never been able to do as the nuns hadn’t been big on field trips. 

There was a large building in front of them that clearly held the activities centre and reception. Surrounding this, with little paths heading deeper into the forest, were little wooden cabins. They were all single-storey but varying sizes. According to the website of the camp they had various size cabins so they could cater for any size family. Apparently the aim of this place was to get closer to nature, with it being likely that you would find animals close to the cabins as this place left the land as close to natural as was possible. The place had a tranquil feeling, and now she was here she found it hard to believe that there could be anything sinister going on here. 

“Come on. Let’s go find out where we’ll be staying for a bit.” Clint had let her gawp at the surroundings before pulling her back to reality. 

**********************************************

Skye looked around the cabin with delight; this day was getting better and better. The cabin was beautiful, very modern, light and airy. There was a living room with TV and DVD player, and an adjoining kitchen that was very modern. Down the hall was a large bedroom with en-suite bathroom. 

“Looks good. I take it you like it?”

“Yeah, it’s beautiful.”

“Look I’ll sleep on the couch in here. It’s more than big enough.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah it’s fine. We’ll just have to pretend we are in the same room if anyone comes.”

“Of course.”

“I was wondering if you wanted to learn to shoot tomorrow?”

“Shoot?”

“I know you are training with Ward and he is teaching you how to shoot guns, but I could show you how to shoot a bow?”

“Really?!That sounds great. Oh my God I’m going to be taught by an Avenger!”

Clint smiled at her as she jumped around in excitement. A binging noise eventually diverted her attention to her phone. The app she had created was showing she had a notification. It was unhackable so it meant she could talk to Ward without blowing their cover.

Hey. We’ve all got here now. Just seen the rest of the team.  
Hey. We’re safe here too. This place is amazing. Part of me hopes this place doesn’t have anything to do with the disappearances. She replied.

Two minutes later he had replied.

I know the feeling. Got to go. See you around.

Skye smiled and headed off to unpack. Clint seemed like he would be good company and she would see the rest of the team around. This was going to go well, it wouldn’t be like last time.

***************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry just a short chapter today. If there is anything you want them to do at the camp let me know.


	13. Chapter 13

Teaching Skye to shoot an arrow wasn’t going well. Even Clint, who had a lot of patience, was beginning to get annoyed. As Skye currently didn’t have any jobs to do they had started practising early. Apparently she was going to be as bad at this as she was with a gun.

“How did your first attempts with a gun go?” Demanded Clint, having quickly dodged her stray arrows.

“Well… I didn’t exactly shoot then. I had a few issues with the safety and magazine release.”

“Oh great. Well at least a bow is easier. All we have to do is improve your aim.”

“You make that sound like an easy task.”

“If we keep working on it then yes it will be. Now I need to start with actual paying customers.”

“Ok. I’ll see you later then.”

“You can keep practising.”

“I think it will safer for everyone if I leave now. Don’t want anyone to be hit with a stray arrow.”

Clint grinned in response. She had initially been worried how they would get on but they had the same sense of humour, which made things a lot easier. Even though they were not supposed to know the others they were already planning on pranking them. It just seemed like such a good opportunity when they were less likely to get caught. Glancing at her watch, a thought came to her. All the classes would be beginning about now, which meant she would be able to see Ward dancing. It wasn’t something she could imagine. Hurrying towards the dance studio, she slipped in and headed upstairs. 

The music was slow and sultry, invoking pictures of dark smoky rooms and hidden romance. Ward and Nat were intertwining their bodies, flicking and twisting to the music. Nat stepped between his legs, kicking and twisting dancing around him, while he remained still. Then at the changing of the music they moved around the room with sharp movements. They remained extremely close, bodies almost aligned. For someone so tall he was a surprisingly good dancer. She had seen the Argentinean Tango performed before but never with such intensity. Their movements were so precise, so timed. She had seen the same movements from Ward when he was fighting. You could see why people would fall in love over this dance. 

Clapping broke out from the guests who had just watched the two agents below. If it wouldn’t have given away her hiding her place she would have joined them. Even so she had obviously made some noise as Nat suddenly looked up and saw her looking down. She turned and spoke to Ward before heading out of the room. Ward had them doing stretches that she recognised from her own training. 

“Hey.” Nat had sat down beside her, coming up without her noticing.

“Hi.”

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah. I just wanted to see you dance. Your really good.”

“Thanks. I wanted to be a dancer before I got taken into the Red Room. Though I was being trained in Ballet rather than Tango.”

“Can I ask you a question?

“Sure.”

“Why are you here? Is it that dangerous?”

“No. I don’t think so. For the cover it helps. Plus as Coulson said we have a personal interest in the case. Erik is a friend of both Clint and Thor. Thor couldn’t come himself so we came for him.”

“Oh.”

“I know you are worried about your team. But this time it will be different. I’ll watch out for him. Nothing will happen to him on my watch.”

*********************************************

Simmons and Trip’s morning had been fairly quiet, with some very simple injuries to treat. The camp had only basic equipment so Fitz was busy doing some simple upgrades, which would improve it greatly. The camp seemed fairly innocent but they had yet to explore much of it. As it was quiet they had decided to get some lunch and see if they could find some other staff.

“Hi, I’m guessing you’re the new staff?” They had barely entered the dinning hall before someone spoke to them.

“Yeah. I’m Tripp, this is Fitz and Simmons.”

“Hi. I’m Holly. I’m one of the waiters. Come on let’s get some food. I hear we have some new chefs. I hope they are better than the last ones.”

Seeing Simmons was about to speak Fitz nudged her, reminding her they weren’t supposed to know the chefs. Today’s choices were burgers or sandwiches. Simmons chose a ham sandwiches while the rest went for a burger. Having got their food Tripp decided it would be a good time to gather some information.

“So Holly, have you worked here long?”

“Since the camp opened about 5 years ago.”

“You’ll be able to give us all the gossip then. I’m surprised there was opening for us.”

“About two years ago you wouldn’t have been right. But since the new owners took over we’ve had a high turn over of staff. You’re not the only ones who are new. As I said we have new chefs, plus some new entertainment staff.”

“Nice to know we aren’t the only ones who are new. Why the sudden change of staff?”

“Not sure. Nothing seemed to change greatly but maybe people just had enough. We are kind of isolated here.”

“So what is there to do around here?”

“Well if you’re not working in the evenings the staff party is normally fun. As it is the beginning of the season we tend to have a big party.”

“Sounds a bit like Dirty Dancing.”

“Ha I wish! Though now we have a new dance teacher maybe that will happen. Anyway I better go. It was nice to meet you.”

“You too. Hopefully we’ll see you around.”

Fitz waited until she had left before speaking.

“We have to go to a party?”

“You can face down people like Garrett but a party scares you? It is a good way to investigate without causing suspicion.”

“Was she talking about Ward?” Asked Simmons, preventing Fitz from retorting. 

“I guess. I think he is the only dance instructor at the moment, unless she was talking about Nat.”

“We should find a way to tell them about that. Their faces would be fantastic!”

******************************************

“Food has gone down well.” Commented May as she served up another batch of burgers.

She was in charge of cooking for the staff while Coulson cooked for the guests. They had many helpers, which was useful due to the amount of food they had to cook, but not when they want to talk about their mission. 

“With your cooking its not really a surprise.”

“I’ve seen Tripp and Fitzsimmons. Looks like they were making friends.”

“Good.”

“Fitz was freaking out about going to a party.”

“We may need to make them go out more when we return to the Bus. How did you hear this?”

“I’ve always had good ears.”

“Have you learnt anything else?”

“We’re not the only new staff. Some staff only stay for about three months before disappearing suddenly. According to management they just quit.”

“You don’t believe it?”

“If it was just one or two then yes. These places can expect that. But from what I’ve heard it’s nearly 50 people.”

“We’d better get Skye to look into it. She is the best person to get the information. Plus she has an excuse to be in the offices. Can you get a message to her?”

“I’m sure I can manage it.” 

********************************************

“Class was good. You make a good teacher.”

“Thanks. Though you’re tone implies you had a different opinion before.”

“I’ve heard stories about you Robot.”

“Oh God. You’ve been talking to Skye.”

“You’re kidding yourself if you think as soon as anyone overheard that it didn’t go around the Hub.”

“People gossip about me?”

“Everyone is interested in the person who managed to make you show emotions. Your assessment by Maria has gone down in history.”

“Oh great. What else do they know?”

“You worry too much. Everyone has history. It’s whether you let it define you or you define yourself.”

“I can never finish paying for what I did.”

“Nor can I. But I won’t let it rule my decisions. What we are doing helps people and hopefully that will remove the red from my ledger. Others see the decisions you make now, not what you did before.”

“I…”

“You may not believe me now, but in time I hope you’ll come to see things my way. Beating yourself up is not a good way to live. Now enough maudlin thoughts, lets get some food.”

********************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so this chapter took a slightly different turn at the end to what I expected but never mind. Nat has strong opinions on Ward beating himself up. Thank you for all your reviews. Please let me know anything you want to happen at the camp or the party.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok I’ve changed the rating due to some of what happens in this chapter and due to the language. If you don’t like that sort of thing just skip the ending of the chapter. Just a warning.

*******************************

Skye quickly let herself into the office knowing she only had a small amount of time before someone came back. May had slipped a message into her food, which she had nearly choked on, so she had hacked into the rota to find out when the office was empty. She had a window of 10 minutes to hack into the records and examine them. Not much time when you had to go through maybe hundreds of records.

She wasted no time in siting down at the computer and loading up what she needed. She had already decided to copy the files to another drive in case she needed to look through them later. 

She was barely five minutes in when she heard footsteps approaching the office. Quickly she powered down the main screen, hoping whoever was coming in wouldn’t notice the USB plugged in. There were very few hiding places in the office leading to her briefly considering hiding beneath the desk. It seemed a bit too obvious though so she dismissed it and chose the filing cabinet. Hopefully nobody needed to file anything! 

She had just pulled the door to when she heard them enter the office. She couldn’t see much through the crack she had left to peer through. Noises told her that they were wandering around the office, clearly in search for something. They were getting closer. She tried to make her breathing quieter, every small movement sounded so loud. Whoever was out there was definitely in front of the cabinet now. 

‘Please don’t let them find me!’ She thought.

The door suddenly flew open. Skye blinked at the sudden light and widely threw a punch. It was caught and she was pulled into the chest of the person in front of her.

“Ward! You scared the shit out of me!”

“Sorry. I was told to provide extra eyes for you by Coulson. I thought you knew.”

“Clearly not. Sorry for punching you.”

“You didn’t hit me. Plus it’s a good reaction. Next we have to work on your hiding places.”

“Do you see a better place?” Retorted Skye as she moved to check on the computer.  
“Be glad I didn’t hide under the desk.”

“There are small mercies I suppose. How much longer?”

“30 seconds.”

“Hurry.”

“I can’t!”

“We’re out of time.”

Skye turned to see what he was looking at and saw Mike, the main manager, coming their way. Grabbing the USB which had just finished she was quickly grabbed by Ward and practically thrown back into the cabinet. It had been small for just her but with both of them there was hardly room to breathe.

“So now it’s a good hiding place.”

“Skye, shush.”

She grumbled quietly to herself. She knew he was right but it didn’t mean she liked it. Sighing she attempted to make herself smaller to give him more room. He was so tall it couldn’t be comfy for him in here. The office door closed with a bang informing her that Mike was now in the office.

“We wait till he is distracted then we make a run for it.” Ward whispered in her ear, lips grazing it. 

She nodded distractedly, knowing he would feel it. He had stayed bent with his lips at her ear so he could whisper orders. Not only could she feel every breath he took by the rise and fall of his chest against hers but she could also feel it against her cheek. It was extremely distracting. His lips brushed against her cheek and down her neck. Was he doing that on purpose? All she wanted to do was tilt her head back, give him greater access. She was scared of banging it against something and giving away her position. She wasn’t supposed to know Ward. She couldn’t be caught with him! Especially not in an office they weren’t supposed to be in.

His lips brushed up her cheek to her ear again. He was definitely doing this on purpose. It was driving her crazy. All she wanted to do was push him up against the wall and kiss him senseless. Maybe remove all of his clothes. 

“Grant.” She whimpered softly. 

She couldn’t give them away but she couldn’t keep silent. In response he nipped at her earlobe before continuing brushing his lips against her cheek. His hands, which had been against her back supporting her, slowly skimmed upwards. Stopping at her breasts he began to tease her, gently squeezing and tracing the nipple through the bra. 

“You bastard.” She groaned tangling her hands in his hair. 

Pulling on it, she moved his head until it was level with hers. Rational thought left her head as she pulled his lips to hers, kissing him passionately. God he could kiss. Between that and his hands she could feel herself going weak at the knees. As if he sensed this he moved one leg between hers, bracing her. Content she wasn’t going to fall over he continued the onslaught, nipping at her bottom lip. 

‘Oh why do we have to be in a cabinet?’ she wondered. If things kept going the way they were she would just have to rip his clothes off here. From the feel of him she didn’t think he would mind. She knew she should be concerned with getting caught but when he kissed her it was like her mind went blank. 

It took the click of the door to bring them back to their senses. Ward peered through a gap in the door before taking her hand and pulling her out of the cabinet. They quickly exited the office, running behind it. Thankfully there was nobody around. Skye was certain she looked a state. Ward definitely didn’t look his normal reserved self.   
After a quick check to make sure they were alone, she pushed him up against the office wall and began kissing him again. With a groan he bent slightly before grasping her thighs, lifting her and wrapping them around him. This left her at his height and pressed deliciously up against him. 

“Skye.”

If he could still talk she clearly wasn’t doing this right. Slowly she began to rock her hips against his, feeling a surge of smugness when he responded. Pulling back slightly she was nearly distracted by his dazed look. God he was attractive like that. 

“Do you have anything you need to be doing?”

He shook his head, clearly still unable to talk. Good. Pressing a kiss against his jaw she ran her lips up to his ear, feeling him shiver with desire. Nipping his lobe like he did before, she whispered:

“Good. I have plans for you. Shall we move somewhere more private or shall I just start removing your clothes?”

In response he turned them so she was pressed up against the wall, nudging her head upwards. As he began to kiss his way down her neck his hands began unbuttoning her shirt. Oh so that was how it was going to be. It was probably just as well, Skye wasn’t sure she could wait till they found a free room. 

Peeling back her bra her revealed nipple began to harden, the air cool against her skin. 

“Oh Fuck.” She cried as he began to suck on it. 

‘I hope no one catches us.’ Was her last rational thought before desire overcame her. 

**************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short I know but I wanted to get this out before I went away. There will be a slight break as I won’t have internet when I’m on holiday. I promise to update when I get back and the next chapter will include the party. It was going to be this chapter but it kind of got away from me.


	15. Party Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter has taken so long. I’ve been distracted with other stories and the nice weather we’ve been having here.

Music could be heard from down the hill leading you up to the cabin sat at its top. There was no way to mistake their destination. It was almost his kind of hell. He didn’t like dancing; give him a lab any day. He knew why he had to go to this party but he didn’t like socialising with people he didn’t know. Plus he knew he wasn’t trendy and he just looked awkward at parties.

 

“It will be fine.” Tripp was looking at him encouragingly. “Just be yourself. I’ll stay with you if it makes you feel better.”

 

“Thanks Tripp.” He could feel his heart rate lessen slightly.

 

“Anytime Leo. Now let’s go and catch up with Jemma. Otherwise she’ll have downed several shots before we get there!”

 

Fitz couldn’t help but laugh at the indignation in Tripp’s voice. Initially he hadn’t been sure about the specialist but he was slowly becoming one of his best friends. He would never beat Jemma of course.

 

Entering the cabin he saw a mess of withering bodies in front of him on what was clearly the dance floor. In some cases it was hard to see where one person finished and another began. Clearly staff had only one thing on their minds when off duty. To his relief there were plenty of people stood around the outside laughing and drinking. That he could do.

 

“At least I didn’t have to carry a watermelon.” Muttered Jemma.

 

“What?” Tripp raised his eyebrows.

 

“Never mind. Drinks?” She walked towards the table nearest the door.

 

Fitz grinned as he followed her. She was right; it was a bit like a scene from Dirty Dancing, though whom that made him he wasn’t sure. Ward was a better fit for Johnny, which left Nat as Penny and maybe Skye as baby. Snorting he was glad nobody could read his thoughts, if she found out about him comparing her to Penny, Nat would probably murder him.  He might mention it to Jemma later though she would appreciate his reasoning. She loved the film as much as he did; it was their guilty pleasure when work wasn’t going well.

 

He was amazed by the amount of people actually here. You didn’t normally get to see that many people when you were working, just the people who had the same shift as you. He did wonder if they would see Holly or the rest of the team. He actually wanted to accidently on purpose point Holly in the direction of Ward. He’d loosened up slightly more recently but it would be interesting to see him deal with attentions.

 

“What’s cheered you up?” Tripp examined him as he passed Fitz a drink.

 

“I’ve just had an evil thought.”

***************************************

It was loud; so loud he didn’t need his hearing aids turned on to hear it. They were so small and made of the best technology that most people didn’t know he was deaf. Stark had adapted them to give him better hearing after learning about them after a mission when they had been broken.

 

The pounding bass hit him in right in the chest. Normally he would be grateful for it, it helped him hear the music, but right now it was just overwhelming. The crowd wasn’t helping either, too many bodies; too many directions attack could come from. To some people this would seem like paranoia but he was of the belief it wasn’t paranoia if they were actually out to get you. Recently it seemed like everyone was out to get him. Hell even Shield had been out to get him. True they were actually Hydra agents. That didn’t make things any better when you come back from a mission to find Shield destroyed and your partner up in front of congress because of the trouble.

 

“Are you completely incapable of sitting like a normal person?”

 

Speak of the devil and she shall appear. Grinning in response he replied innocently:

 

“Isn’t this how everybody sits?”

 

He knew it drove Nat crazy. She’d been trying for years to get him to sit as she did but it was one of the few habits she couldn’t break. Perched on a sofa, he rested his feet on the main cushion with his torso resting against the back of the sofa. It made it so much easier to react if there was an attack. Nat knew this as well but still tried to get him to sit like everyone else. 

 

“Is there a particular reason you’re sat up here brooding while there is a party going on below?” He could hear the snicker in her voice; she knew he disliked crowded rooms. It was a survival instinct they both had.

 

“I’m not brooding.”

 

“Clint you’re sat on a platform overlooking the party on your own until I joined you. How is that not brooding?”

 

When he didn’t reply she slipped onto the sofa beside him, placing a gentle hand on his knee.

 

“Talk to me Clint. Is it about Erik?” She used the tone that was saved for when they were alone. Very few people knew of the gentler side of Nat, she preferred it that was. In her view opinions about what a person would and wouldn’t do were sometimes better than actions. It meant you didn’t have to always follow through with terrible threats when people believed you would do it.

 

Nodding in response he turned to look at her so she could read the worry in his eyes that he simply couldn’t voice allowed.

 

“Hey. He will be fine. He’s been in worse situations before and he survived. He’s strong.”

 

Glancing down at her hand on his knee he reached out and squeezed it gently.

 

“Anyway want to know the camp scuttlebutt?” That was Nat. Once a spy, always a spy. “ Apparently there is an affair going on that he the camp rumour mill going mad.”

 

“Oh? Anyone we know?”

 

“Actually yes. Apparently we’re both being cheated on!”

 

He looked at her and started laughing.

 

“Is it true? How the hell have they kept it from Coulson?” He choked, still laughing.

 

“Oh yeah. It’s true. They even have their own communications system.”

 

“We have our own communication system!”

 

“Yes and that’s totally innocent isn’t it.” She gave him a pointed look before continuing.

“Anyway I thought you might want to help he have some fun with this.”

 

“Oh yeah.”

 

“Come on then. No time like the present.”

 

Pulling him to his feet she lead him downstairs over to a less makeshift bar where Ward was sat on a bar stool looking off into the crowd. Following his gaze Clint realised that he was watching Skye at the edge of the dance floor with another guy. Judging by the guy’s body language he was pulling out his best pulling movies, a fact that hadn’t escaped Ward by has dark look. Clint wasn’t worried about Skye, from what Coulson had told him she could take care of herself.

 

Nat crept up behind Ward before blowing on his ear, making the specialist jump slightly.

 

“Jesus Nat. Do you have to do that?” He complained.

 

“Yes. Yes I do. Now are you aware that you’re at a party?”

 

“Really? I thought this was a work meeting.”

 

He had to give it to Ward; he could snark with the best of them. It would only encourage Nat though.

 

“Then cheer up. Between you and Clint you’d think somebody was torturing you.”

 

At the specialist’s slight wince Clint turned back to see Skye now standing with the guy’s arm around her waist. It didn’t take a genius to read the muscles rippling in Ward’s jaw to know that this was a form of torture for him.

 

“I wouldn’t worry too much she can take care of herself.” He nodded slightly in Skye’s direction.

 

“I know. It’s just as her SO I like to keep an eye.” Ward spat out through gritted teeth.

 

Oh he clearly had it bad. They definitely could have some fun with this.

 

**************************************

 

Tripp woke up with a banging in his head. Groaning he looked at the clock and found the room was empty. Oh god it was ten. He never slept in this late. It was Jemma’s fault. God that woman could hold her liquor. He’s mistakenly got into a drinking game with her and Fitz with some of the other members of staff. The science duo had convinced him it would lead them to get the information they needed, as the staff would loosen up as they got to know them. Not only had they not got any more information, he was certain that things had gone downhill after that. It was slightly blurry but he had a feeling there was something to do with a boat race and the steeling of certain items from hated managers’ offices.

 

Staggering slightly he noticed the note on the floor as he headed towards the shower. Reading it quickly he glanced at the clock and then the note again. Great! He had ten minutes.

 

Exactly eleven minutes later he stumbled out towards the car park to find Coulson waiting for him beside Lola. At Coulson’s indication he climbed into her and watched as Coulson drove them away. He’d never driven in Lola before, Ward had destroyed her just after the Hydra reveal. Since then he had been repairing her as part of his reparations to the team. He had to admit she was a sweet ride.

 

“Sir. Is this wise? Won’t people wonder why I’m going with you?”

 

“If asked just say you heard I was going to the shops and asked if you catch a lift.”

 

“Is that where we’re going shops?”

 

“Yes. While you were busy making friends last night May and I found out about some located nearby. They’re the only places anywhere near here so may provide some information.”

 

“Ok. Sir about last night…”

 

“Don’t worry about it Tripp. I’m sure Skye will be able to stop the leaking of photos online.”

 

Oh so it was worse that he imagined. He’d put his head in his hand if he didn’t think it would make his headache worse. He was beginning to wish he’d never got out of bed this morning.

 


	16. Chapter 16

The drive out was pleasant eventually once his head had stopped banging. After a short amount of time they pulled up outside a large shop. Tripp suspected Coulson had taken a longer route to give him more time to recover, plus he just liked driving Lola. The shop appeared to be a converted barn with living space behind it.

 

Entering the shop it was clear that it sold practically everything. Food was located on the left with the right side containing clothes and other household items.

“Shall we have a look around?” Tripp asked.

“Sure.” Coulson waved looking distracted. God knows what he’d seen. Tripp was more interested in finding a hang over cure so headed into the food area looking for something that might help. As he’d missed breakfast he was hungry but he needed something that wouldn’t make him sick. He wandered around for about ten minutes picking up some things he needed including a yogurt drink he thought he could stomach and a cream cake he was going to use to bribe Skye. She loved them but Ward tended to stop her eating them. Anyone who managed to sneak her one she promised she would do anything for. It wouldn’t be too difficult to get it to her as Ward was in a different part of the resort and he really needed her help. She would owe him so he could get her to delete those photos and ensure she didn’t keep a copy to blackmail him with later. Or so he hoped.

 

Having got everything he needed he headed off to find Coulson and see if they could find any information. He eventually found him looking at comics. It was unusual for a shop like this to sell anything like that but having a closer look he realised it was a vintage Captain America comic. The rest on the shelf were all vintage, which explained why they were being sold here. A notice beside them explained they were being displayed and were being sold on a specialist website but enquiries were welcome. Glancing at what Coulson was holding he couldn’t help his gasp.

“Is… is… is… that?” He stuttered.

“A limited edition Captain America comic! It’s in pristine condition! I don’t think it’s ever been read!”

“Oh my God! They only printed about one hundred of them! Most got destroyed. We have to get it!”

“Tripp. We can’t.”

“Come on we have room at home. Please Phil. You know you want to!” Normally he would never call his boss by his first name but he really wanted to get this comic plus it wasn’t exactly about work so he felt he could use his first name. They’d all been instructed to use first names when they weren’t on duty. Plus calling him sir here would probably blow their cover.

“Hello. I take it you like comics then. I haven’t seen anyone react like that to any of the comics except my son. I’m Jenny.”

“Hi I’m Tripp and the guy staring at the comic in longing is Phil. He has a thing for Captain America. He tends to fan girl a bit.”

“Nothing wrong with that. Anyone would fan girl over Captain America, he’s quite a guy! I have to confess I’m more of a Thor girl myself. He’s one of the favourites of my son, Jamie, though I think he does prefer the guardians of the galaxy.”

“Nothing wrong with them right Phil?” He was still stood looking at the comic with a kind of envy. “I think he might want that one.”

“I think I can cope with that. I’m sure my son won’t mind selling it. Plus I’m sure he’ll be happy it’s going to such a fan.”

“If you don’t mind me asking if he’s such a fan why is he selling it?”

“He wants to go to college to become a doctor so he’s selling them to fund it.”

“Pretty impressive.”

“I wish I could help. But he’s far more intelligent than I am. I tried to home school him but I wasn’t clever enough. Jamie just loves science he is always talking about the big names as if they’re celebrities!”

“Maybe you could help me then. You may have noticed some scientist here recently. One of my friends Dr Erik Selvig was here. If your son is a fan he may have noticed him. I’m trying to get back in touch with him; he forgot to give me a number to where he was going next. I’m just trying to track him down.”

“I don’t remember him but if you give me a number I can ask my son and get back to you. If he is a scientist and he was here Jamie would’ve noticed him. A scientist within five miles of here and Jamie would find him.”

“Thank you. Here’s my number. I’ll guess we’ll get these items now. Phil you need to let go of the comic if we’re going to get it!”

 

Tripp decided to make the executive decision to get the comic otherwise they would be stood here for hours with him just staring at it. Gently prising it out of his hand Tripp handed it to Jenny and followed her over to the register. Ringing up his purchases with practised ease Jenny continued to gush about her son. It was clear she adored him and they might be able to provide some information about the missing scientists if questioned extremely carefully.

 

“Thank you for this. I’m sure Phil will love the comic. You can tell Jamie it’s going to a good home.”

“Thank you. I’m sure he’ll be glad it’s going to a good home. I’m glad it went to you and your partner.”

‘Hang on! Did she just say partner? Did she think?’ Tripp suddenly wondered if she’d got the wrong end of the stick.

“It’s so nice for a couple to be interested in the same thing. He’s a lucky guy to have you.”

“Thanks. I’m actually the lucky one.”

“Its’ so nice to hear that. Couples like you are so rare! Anyway there you go. I’ll let you know about your friend.”

 

Thanking her Tripp headed over to Coulson in a slight daze. Throwing his arm around his shoulders praying Coulson would play along.

“Come on honey. Let’s go.”

Although he got a strange look from Coulson he played along, getting into Lola and driving off before the questions began.

“Honey?”

“Sorry Sir. She got the wrong end of the stick. She thought we were a couple so I had to play along.”

 

Coulson looked at him for a second before laughing.

“Of all the things that could happen. Oh well. Did you manage to find out anything?”

“Actually yes. Her son is a big science geek and notices any that are around. She’s going to ask him and get back to us.”

“At least we have a sort of lead. We’d better not introduce him to Fitzsimmons though. I don’t know who would freak out more!”

 

**************************

“Hey darling.” Skye called keeping up her cover as there were still guests around.

“Hey cutie pie. Ready for your lesson?” Clint grinned at her knowing that endearment drove her crackers. He’d promised to give her another lesson during his lunch break. She was hoping she would improve slightly this time. Maybe she could actually hit a target!

“So did you have fun last night?”

“Yeah it was good. Tripp was a hoot wasn’t he?”

“Yeah. I’ve not seen anyone move like that since Nat put itching powder in some one’s suit.”

“Ha ha. Maybe I should try that with the robot. Might make him loosen up a bit.”

“Speaking of your robot you should have seen him last night.”

“He’s not my robot! Anyway don’t just stop there. If you have gossip spill!”

“It’s not really gossip. It was just he couldn’t keep his eyes off you. I think he has feelings for you.”

“What? That’s… he… He’s a robot. He doesn’t have feelings. Besides he probably was just watching out for me as my SO.” She spluttered as she raised the bow.

“Your arms to high. Sight down the arrow.” Clint instructed her, moving forward to reposition her. “I highly doubt it was as your SO. He looked like he wanted to cream the guy you were talking to.”

“He’s a bit protective. He still has issues that the last time he let me go on a mission on my own I got shot. He thinks it’s his job to protect me.” She really hoped Clint would drop it, he noticed far too much.

 

Concentrating on the target she released the string and watched as the arrow flew into the target. It was nowhere near the centre but at least she’d hit it.

“I did it!” She squealed jumping up and down.

“You sure did. Now try and do it again.” Clint laughed.

 

Half an hour later and they called it a day. She hadn’t hit the target again but Clint had said her misses were a lot smaller than before. She was slowly improving though at the rate she was going it might take her another two years to actually hit what she was aiming at. Wandering back to their cabin she was surprised to bump into Tripp. She hadn’t seen him in a while and as they were on a solitary path in the woods she could safely talk to him. As she neared him she could hear him muttering about been mistaken for a couple with somebody.

‘Probably someone thinking him and Fitzsimmons are all together.’ She reasoned.

 

“Tripp.”

“Oh hey Skye. I was going to come looking for you. I have a present for you.”

“Would this have something to do with me loosing some embarrassing photos of you?”

“Now why would you say that? Can’t a guy buy a present for you and not want anything in return?”

“Sure.”

“Actually your right. I would have bought you cake anyway just to see Ward’s face when he finds out you’ve eaten it. But anyway can you make those photos…”

“Already done it.”

“You’re amazing Skye!” He hugged her. “Actually I have another message for you, from Coulson.”

“Oh?”

“He asked could you look into someone for us? Just normal background. It’s Jenny and Jamie; don’t know their last name. They run the shop that’s near here.”

“Sure. Shouldn’t take to long.”

“Thanks Skye. Anyway I’d better run, I’m sure I promised to help Jemma with something but I can’t remember what.”

 

She waved as he walked away from her. Looking in the bag he’d given her she found a spectacular cream cake, the kind you couldn’t eat without getting covered in cream. She’d eat it when she got back to the cabin then she wouldn’t drop any cream. You couldn’t waste it! Then she could find out the information for Coulson, it was safer in her cabin. Nobody could creep up on her!


	17. Chapter 17

Ward was taking time to enjoy the beautiful surroundings. Or that was what he told anyone he met. What he was actually doing was a perimeter check and examining anything suspicious he could find. There was still no news concerning the missing scientists, Tripp’s contact had said Selvig had visited, something Skye had confirmed yet nothing had come of it. It was like they’d vanished into thin air. It wasn’t even like they’d all gone missing at the same time. As far as they could tell they’d been taken at random, with some of the scientist being able to be taken over a two day time period that couldn’t be narrowed down. It was an investigators nightmare. 

Plus being undercover was beginning to get to him. He understood it was his job but constantly having to keep up an act was exhausting. He missed having time to himself; there was always another member of staff around here. He also missed his team. They could annoy him and drive him up the wall but by not being able to talk to them he realised how much he missed Fitzsimmons science babble, May silent confidence and Coulson’s reassuring presence. He even missed training Skye, though at times that could be a torture in itself.   
“Never thought I’d say that.” He muttered to himself smiling lightly.  
“You know talking to yourself is the first sign of madness.” Quipped a voice he recognised.  
“Well if I’m going mad it’s your fault! You’ve driven me to it!”   
He felt the smack against his shoulder and turned to grin at the young woman glaring at him. The punch had a lot more power behind it than it used to, showing she had been paying attention when he’d taught her.  
“Sure Robot. Everyone knows I’ve just hacked your programming.”   
Pulling into her arms he placed gentle kisses down her neck, feeling her shudder slightly. He knew none of the other staff came out this far from the resort so they wouldn’t get caught for a bit.  
“Not that I’m complaining but why are you out here?” He gently nibbled on her ear, grinning as she sighed in response.  
“Finding you… stop distracting me! Clint went with Nat to break into a secure area of the resort to find more information. I wasn’t getting anywhere so I came out for a break… don’t tickle me! I missed you.” She squirmed as he did all he could to distract her and make her laugh. He could feel the tension in her body and could understand her frustration. Having no leads was annoying enough, even more so when your team were expecting you to find something.   
“How’s target practise going?” He knew Clint was teaching her how to shoot a bow and arrow, which would be a handy skill for her to have. He saw the slight grimace, guessing that it was something else that was leading to her frustration.   
“I may hit something soon. In the next five years if I keep going the way I’m going.”  
“Relax. I’m sure you’ll get it. I’m sure you’re doing better than most agents your level.”  
“Right!”  
“I’m serious. If you were in the academy you’d see how good you are. Remember when you’re judging yourself against the rest of the team we’ve been doing it a while plus we’ve have had a lot more training. It will come. Just give it time.”  
“You’re a good SO.” She gave a quick kiss. “I’d better go. I need to go and run another search before Clint gets back.”  
She kissed him again before she skipped off back to her cabin. At least he’d cheered her up. 

He continued his perimeter check and found nothing. He was just about to go and pound out his frustrations on the punch bag when he saw a door open in a cabin nearby. Simmons closed the door to her cabin quietly before stepping quickly into the woods. He wasn’t concerned about her going into the woods, they were safe he’d checked, but more that she’d gone alone. Coulson wanted everyone to be accompanied if at all possible. He was exempt from the rule as he was involved in the security for the team. Simmons had little to no training so really shouldn’t be out on her own. After a moments indecision he decided to follow and catch up with her. He’d never forgive himself if anything happened to her, as he didn’t check she was all right. Lengthening his stride he soon caught up with her and gently placed his hand on her shoulder. He’d deliberately made more noise walking than he normally would so as not to frighten her.  
“Simmons. Everything all right?”  
“Oh Ward. Yes. Everything’s fine.”  
“Then why are you out here on your own?”  
“It… it… I needed a break from the boys.” He knew she could tell he was only concerned about her.  
“This undercover has been difficult for you.”   
“I don’t like this place. I want to be back in the lab. I love being back in the UK but I miss my lab.”  
“That’s understandable.”  
“You don’t believe me?” She accused.  
“You haven’t exactly being acting yourself.”  
“I know. I just have a decision to make. I’ve been meaning to make it for a while but kept putting it off. I keep trying to look it in a scientific way but I keep failing.”  
“Anything I can help with?”  
“Not unless you can tell me how I feel.”  
“Oh!” He hadn’t expected that. He suspected her decision had something to do with Tripp and Fitz. He knew she liked both men and they both liked her but he kept out of it, knowing it had nothing to do with him. Catching his deer in headlights look Simmons laughed and put her hand on his arm.  
“Don’t worry about it.”  
“I can help in one way.”  
“Oh?”  
“If you want to walk and have some peace I’m more than happy to walk with you. Then you’re not alone.”  
“I’d like that.” She smiled tentatively at him.  
“Then follow me this way.”  
**********************************  
Tripp entered the cabin having finished his shift, bewildered when he found it empty. Both Fitz and Simmons should have been here as they finished early than him. They were all going to change and then get some food together. He knew Simmons had been distracted lately, something that had worried both him and Fitz. They’d given her space, knowing she’d talk to them when she was ready. 

Moving to his part of the cabin he saw a note on Simmons’ bed as he passed it. A quick read through told him she’d gone for a walk. He still had no idea where Fitz was, though knowing him he’d got distracted building something and lost track of the time. Without Simmons’ he tended to forget simple things like eating when he got into a project. It was actually adorable. He changed so that once Simmons was back they could go and collect Fitz and ensure he actually ate something. A knock on the door caught his attention. He knew from the pattern used it was one of the team, which was strange as they were supposed to be keeping their distance something Skye and Ward seemed to have trouble with much to his amusement.   
“Clint. Nat.” He opened the door upon seeing them and let them step inside.   
“Have you seen Skye?” Clint asked as Nat examined the cabin.  
“No. But she could be with Ward if not in your cabin.”  
“You’ve noticed too?” Nat questioned as she sat on Fitz’s bed.  
“It’s kind of hard not to.”  
Before anyone could continue they heard voices coming closer to them and the back door opened revealing Simmons and Ward. Both were laughing at something with Simmons talking animatedly, clearly happier than she’d been for a while. Noticing the trio in the cabin they both stopped talking.  
“No Skye?” Clint asked.  
“No. Last I saw her she was heading back to the cabin.” Ward commented looking between the assassins.  
“Hmmm. Maybe she went for food. We need her expertise. Found a computer with an encryption on it. Nat couldn’t break it. Anyway we also found these specs. Can you understand them?” Clint passed a set of rolled up papers to Simmons,  
“It’s more Fitz’s area than mine but I’m sure we can work it out. Where is he?”  
“I assume he’s got distracted again.” Tripp offered.  
“Oh Fitz.” She sighed clearly used to it.  
“Well I’d better find Skye. No doubt she’s taking any opportunity to eat junk food.” Clint teased Ward who to everyone’s amusement rolled his eyes.  
“Well we’ve got a class. Come on Ward.” Nat ordered as she headed for the door clearly expecting him to follow. Tripp couldn’t hide his grin when Ward followed her like a puppy. Nat wasn’t someone you argued with!


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics are happening at a slightly different time to the rest of the chapter.

*******************************************

_Fitz sat up slowly feeling disorientated, his head cloudy. He couldn’t remember feeling tired or being anywhere that was a pitch-black room. Squinting he hoped his eyes would become accustomed to the dark yet he still couldn’t distinguish anything that would tell him where he was. Biting down on the panic that was rising within him he concentrated on his breathing, trying to keep it slow and even and force the panic away. Recalling Ward’s words of advise he pushed the panic away._

_“If you ever find yourself in an unknown situation don’t panic. Take sometime to calm yourself and ignore your bodies natural reaction as you will be in a better place to react.” Ward’s voice came back to him. Remembering his instructions would help him get through this. Ward had trained him so he could get himself out of situations. Ward had sat down and run through little things that he could do to help himself. Focusing on his breathing also had the advantage of clearing his head._

_As his breathing normalised he thought back to the rest of Ward’s advice._

_“If you can’t see anything listen, any noises can give you a clue to where you are. Focus on your other sense, your eyes aren’t everything. Smells, noises, they’re all helpful for telling you where you are. Gather information, everything you learn can help you escape.” Ward’s voice was a focus point for him. He could get through this. Normally he would focus on what Jemma would do but it wouldn’t help him in this instant. Ward was the expert so it was him he needed to listen to. Heeding his advice concentrating on what he could deceiver from his environment. There was a faint smell of grease and fat, suggesting food. In contrast to that there was a clean, almost soapy smell that cut through the grease, as if it was the newer smell. If he had to guess, something he would never normally do, he would say shower gel or maybe aftershave. Somebody else was in here or had been recently. Whoever had put him here wouldn’t have left that scent; it had to have been someone in here for a long period of time. Ignoring smells for a bit he focused on noises. Straining his ears he failed to hear anything._

_“Absence of sound doesn’t mean you haven’t learned anything. On the contrary it tells you a lot.” Ward’s voice came back to him. He was right. He clearly wasn’t at the camp anymore or he was deep underground. There were no animal noises, as he would expect. No traffic either so he’d been moved from where he was. A faint snuffling noise grabbed his attention. He hadn’t noticed before, as it was so quiet._

_“Hello?” If it was a person maybe he could find out some more information. He daren’t stand up in case there was anything on the floor. He couldn’t escape if he was injured, something Ward had drummed into him. The snuffling continued so he decided to speak again but a little bit louder. Normally he would be scared but he knew he wasn’t on his own. Even if the noise wasn’t a friendly or wasn’t human he wasn’t alone. Ward was with him, helping him, encouraging him, giving him advice. He wasn’t alone. Ward was right there beside him, in his mind._

_“Hello?”_

_The snuffling stopped before there was a click and light filled the room. Blinking at the sudden light Fitz saw he was sitting on a cot bed, with a crate beside him. In front of him was a set of bars with a padlocked door. The light came from the other side of the bars where there was a similar bed with a person lying on it. There was a crate with a small table lamp that was giving off the light and a door that clearly led out of the cell. Fitz watched as the man rose from the bed and came to stand beside the bars._

_“Oh good you’re awake.”_

_“Dr Selvig?”_

_“You know me?”_

_“My name is Leo Fitz, I’m with Shield. We came to find you after you disappeared.”_

_“Well you found me, not sure what good it will do you. We’re both stuck here now.”_

_“But I’m not on my own. My team will find us.”  
“Shield?”_

_“You may not like them but we do good work. Plus it’s not just them. Black Widow and Hawkeye are with us.”_

_“The hawk? Maybe they do have a chance.”_

_“It will be ok. Now what can you tell me about here or the people that have us?” Remembering Ward’s words he began to gather evidence. Then maybe they could create a plan to get them out of wherever they were._

***********************************************

Clint wandered along to the food hall keeping his eyes open for Skye. They needed her skills, plus it was slightly concerning that no one had seen her for a bit. They were just outside the dinning room when he spotted her heading towards them.

“Hey. We’ve been looking for you.”

“I’ve been working.” She explained. As she didn’t expand on that it told him she was doing work for Shield rather than anything for her job here.

“Unfortunately I’ve got something else for you to do. No hurry though.” He carefully handed her a slip of paper that told her everything they needed doing.

“Huh. OK. I’ll meet you in there soon. I’ll get this started.”

“You can eat first.”

“It can run while we’re eating. Saves some time. Don’t eat all the food.” She teased as she headed back towards the cabin.

“No promises.” He called back at her before turning to Nat.

“I know that look.” She commented as he held the door open for her.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He tried for innocent but knew he failed miserably. She knew him too well anyway; they’d worked together for so long. Besides he knew she’d want in on this. She was nearly as mischievous as he was.

“I had an idea. For the first time we’ve got everyone here eating at the same time.”

“Your point being?”

“I think it’s time to have some fun. You remember that girl Tripp mentioned Holly?”

“Sure.”

“Didn’t they say she had a thing for Ward? Maybe we should get her talking to him. It’s a good way for him to improve his people skills.”

He watched the grin spread across her face.

“You just want to see how Skye reacts.” She accused but began writing a quick note on a napkin.

“Partly. Plus it will be interesting to see if he’s as much of a robot as Skye thinks he is. I would if it will fry his circuits.”

“You’re evil.” She commented as she began grabbing her food. No one else would see her quickly slip the napkin to May. His plan was in motion already. This was going to be fun!

**************************************

May glanced at the note she’d been handed before rolling her eyes slightly. Nat and Clint were up to their usual tricks. It didn’t stop her from handing the note onto Tripp who was the intended recipient. She couldn’t and didn’t want to stop their plans but she would keep an eye on them all the same. Both her and Coulson were cooking for the staff tonight as one of the kitchen staff had gone off poorly. It meant both of them could keep an eye on the team. Neither were bothered about pranks within the team as long as it didn’t affect the mission. When you were undercover for a long time you needed to blow off steam. One of the best ways to do that was wind up your team members when they couldn’t say anything about it. She herself had been voted one of the best prankers within Shield. She was particularly proud of one mission where she’d pulled a joke on a team member using a shoelace and some bubble gum. That had lead to her winning the award for best joke for six months running, as voted for by other specialists. It was something that people didn’t expect from the serious specialist but you had to let your hair down occasionally. It was the only way to stay sane!

 

She positioned herself carefully so she could watch the drama unfold and prevent anything that could compromise the mission. She had to admit she was interested in how Ward would handle it. His people skills had improved since he’d been outed as Hydra and got help for the various issues that Garrett and his parents had left him with. It had taken a while but the team had forgiven him and helped him find his place again. Spending time with Nat would also have been beneficial as she had been there and knew exactly what he’d been through. It didn’t mean he was immune to the pranks though. She’d had one planned for him for a while; she might just have to put into action when this mission was over. The team needed a good laugh.

 

The team were all there apart from Simmons who was apparently looking for Fitz. He hadn’t been in his cabin when she’d got back. May wasn’t greatly concerned, everyone had become used to Fitz getting distracted when on a project and forgetting meals. Therefore, she was surprised when a hysterical Simmons burst into the kitchen.

“Fitz! He’s nowhere to be found something’s happened to him.”

“Simmons. Call down.” Coulson ordered with no effect. She needed to stay calm so they could help. Panicking wasn’t going to help find Fitz.

“He’s gone. Where’s he gone? We have to find him?”

May had never seen her so upset. Not even when they were unsure what the lack of oxygen would do to Fitz. The door to the dinning room opened revealing Nat, who’d clearly noticed the commotion occurring in the kitchen. Simmons was still hyperventilating, ignoring Coulson’s efforts to calm her down. May watched as Nat reached out to the young woman and jumped to catch Simmons before she hit the floor.

“Nat!” Complained Coulson.

“What? You needed her calmed down.” She replied unrepentant. “She was causing a scene.”

“Calmed down yes. Unconscious no.”

“Just pretend she passed out. What do you need us to do?”

“Get Ward and Tripp to go out and search for Fitz. You and Clint go to Skye and get her to track his cell phone and check the cameras. May and I will look after Simmons.” Coulson ordered, bending to examine Simmons. May sighed and adjusted her grip on the young woman. They were going to have move her out from the kitchen to somewhere they could lie her down safely.

******************************************

_Fitz had talked to Erik for a while, yet was no closer to figure out where they were. The guard who provided food wore a mask and refused to talk. They were only allowed out of the cells to shower and Erik hadn’t seen any of the other missing scientists._

_“I’ve no idea why I was taken.”_

_He hadn’t been able to explain how he’d been taken either. Like Fitz he’d woken up in the room with a splitting head. Fitz suspected that they’d both been drugged. But with a blood test there was no way to confirm this. They were no further forward in finding a way out. Erik had examined as much of the room as he could yet had found no way out. It looked like the only way out was the door on Erik’s side but neither of them would be able to force it open even if he could have forced his way over to Erik’s side._

_“Play to your strengths Fitz. There always is a way. You’re smart. Plan. Find a way around problems.” Ward’s voice came to him again. There were two extremely smart people in this room. Surely they could find a way out of this. They’d begun talking quietly, trying to share ideas and find a way out. They still were unsure if there were cameras in the room so were taking no chances. When the door opened they both jumped, as they’d been so engrossed in their conversation._

_“Some more company for you.” Growled the person at the door, before they reached behind them and threw someone into the room. They rolled across the floor before coming to a stop beside Erik’s feet._

 


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in this, I know I left it on a cliffhanger. I’ve been a way on holiday. There is a slight trigger warning on this chapter for discussion of suicide, just in case it affects anyone. It’s in the first paragraph so if it’s an issue you are able to skip it.

************************************************

They arrived in at the cabin to find it in darkness, which was strange. They hadn’t passed Skye on their way here so she should have still been in the cabin.

“She’ll have bumped into Ward. He’ll have insisted on taking her with him.” Nat supplied reading the worry on her partners face.

“Sure. But we can’t get very far tracking Fitz’s phone without her.”

“Sure we can.” Nat pushed through the cabin door and headed for his laptop.

“Nat. I’ve no idea how to track a phone!”

“But I do.” She grinned the smile that she knew drove him crackers.

“When did you learn to do that?” He demanded knowing he was playing right into her hands. She loved to wind him up.

“I’m a spy. Of course I know how to do it!”

“Nat!” He pouted, hoping she’d answer truthfully this time. Some people would be scandalised by them playing games at a time like this but it was how they dealt with pressure. When they got serious you knew something had gone badly wrong and people were going to get hurt. If something had happened to Fitz then that would happen. Anyone on Coulson’s team was family to them. Part of him hoped that if they kept joking around they’d find Fitz had just lost track of time somewhere and would be all right. He didn’t want anything to have happened to him.

“Fine. I asked someone at Shield to teach me. I thought it would be a useful skill to have.”

“You wanted to be able to keep an eye on people.” The realisation dawned on him.

“Yes. Fine. After Hydra was revealed I wanted to keep an eye on people.”

“But you’ve always known we live in a dangerous world. What pushed you over the edge to do this?” He knew there was more to the story that just Hydra.

“Ward.”

“Ward?”

“After he was revealed as Hydra and he started to look at the consequences of his actions I was brought in to talk to him as I’d been through a similar thing. When talking to him I recognised a similar thought pattern I’d been through. Once released and when I realised exactly what I’d done I thought about killing myself.”

“Nat…”

“Hush let me finish.” She concentrated on the computer as she continued her story, unable to look him in the eye. “I recognised the thought process, of absolutely hating yourself. Wanting to end it just so you don’t cause anyone else pain. So yes I learned how to track his phone. I wanted a chance to stop him doing that. To show him he could make amends, that he could still have a good life. Yes I’m still wiping the red from my ledger but if I helped him see that killing himself wasn’t the answer then maybe I could repay the people who stood by me.”

“You did the right thing Nat.” He came over and stood near her. He knew she wouldn’t want to be touched right now but he hoped his presence would sooth her slightly.

“He came to me. By himself and we talked. I was just glad he came to me before doing anything stupid.”

“He’s a smart guy Nat. I know he’s grateful for what you did. Skye would be too if she knew.”

“That’s for him to tell her though.”

“He will, in his own time. You eventually told me.”

“I did. Didn’t I.” She smiled gently at him and he knew it would be all right. Raising her hand she used sign language to say thank you, something she did when she truly meant something. They rarely used it, as he didn’t want people to know about his hearing aids. Enemies could use it against him, so they kept it quiet. Any time he signed back before they both examined the computer.

 

The screen showed a map of the area but was otherwise blank.

“I’m going to go with it’s not supposed to be blank.”

“No.” She began tapping on a few keys but nothing changed.

“Are you sure you’ve done it right? Ouch!” Rubbing his shoulder where she’d hit him he glared at her. It was just a question.

“Yes. I don’t know why I haven’t got anything. How old is your laptop?”

“I don’t know.”

“Could be the software.”

“Try Skye’s. I’m sure it will be up to date.”

He moved to grab Skye’s laptop from the bed, frowning at the temperature of it.

“It’s cold.”

“Doesn’t look like it’s on.” Nat commented as she watched Clint input the password so she could try again with the newer software.

“Shouldn’t it be on? She was going to do something for us.”

Nat nodded as she worked.

“Keep it quiet for now. I’m sure there is an explanation.”

Seeing him looking unconvinced she continued.

“She could have just been found by one of the team before she got here. Or powered it down. We need more answers before we do anything. But for god’s sake don’t say anything to Ward.”

“Why?”

“She’s one of the few things that can set him off. If anything’s happened to her and he finds out I’m not sure what he’ll do.”

He knew she was right so let her continue with tracking the phone, solving this mystery meant they could then go and find Skye.

“Blank again?” When she’d finally finished the map looked just the same as before.

“Yes but this time I can see it’s been turned off. You can see the last ping was from the camp entrance.”

“Why would he be there? Or turn his phone off?”

“I’ve no idea. We’d better find Coulson.”

 

The door opened behind them causing both spies to reach for weapons they had concealed on their person. All though he preferred his bow in places like this a gun was more helpful.

“Easy guys. It’s me.” Ward held his hands up as he walked to them.

“Anything?” Clint asked holstering his gun.

“No. We haven’t found any sign of him. You?”

“Phone’s off. Last known location camp entrance.”

Ward frowned at that before looking around the cabin.

“Where’s Skye?”

***************************

_Fitz watched as Erik bent to examine the person on the floor. At this angle it was hard to tell if it was a guy or a girl. There was still no chance of an escape as the door had already been closed. Erik gently lifted their head, before slowly rolling them over so they were lying on their back. The long dark brown hair partially obscured their face but it didn’t prevent Fitz gasping._

_“Skye!”_

_“You know her?” Erik barely looked up from his examination of her._

_“Yes. She’s a friend and teammate. The hacker I told you about.”_

_“I’m no doctor but she looks fine. She’s just unconscious.”_

_“Oh thank god.” Raising his hands to his face for a second he let all his emotions out before rubbing his face and looking back at Erik. He hadn’t liked how still she was._

_“I’ll see if I can make her more comfortable.” Erik quickly stripped the bed, placing a pillow under Skye’s head and a blanket over the top of her._

_“I’m sorry I can’t lift her onto the bed.” Erik muttered apologetically._

_“She’ll be grateful for what you’ve done for her.” Fitz assured him._

_He moved so he could sit near Skye so that when she woke up she could see a friendly face. They couldn’t do much to escape now, not with Skye unconscious. It would have been difficult enough before without them having to carry her to escape. Leaving her behind wasn’t an option. Falling back on Ward’s advice he began discussing what they’d found out again with Erik, examining it again with Skye now having been brought in. She hadn’t provided them with any more information, but it gave him hope that they weren’t far from the camp. Or that as two of them had now been taken the team would be out looking for them._

_By his estimation it was a few hours later when the door opened again. He hoped it was food or at least a drink as he’d talked himself hawse as they’d discussed plans for escape. Skye still hadn’t come around but as Erik could find no marks on her head it suggested she didn’t have concussion, just probably had been drugged._

_“Come with us.” Growled the figure at the door, pointing at Erik._

_“What about me?” Fitz asked trying to stop his voice trembling._

_“You stay here.”_

_“It’s ok Leo.” Erik placed a comforting hand on his arm through the bars. “I’ll return soon.”_

_It was his way of telling him he would gather more information and would be ok on his own. Fitz nodded to show he understood before moving closer to Skye again. The door shut with a loud click, emphasising just how alone he was now. How Erik had stood being on his own for all that time, Fitz didn’t know._

_“Skye please wake up. I need you.” He pleaded as she lay still beside him._

*****************************************

“We thought she was with you.” Nat replied careful trying to keep Ward from freaking out. She knew how protective of his Rookie he was. He’d been bad enough before they’d started going out but since then he’d got worse. He often came to her saying how he didn’t deserve Skye, but it was fairly obvious to anyone who spent anytime near them that they were both in love with each other. She wasn’t sure how Coulson had missed it actually. Maybe he just had a lot of things on his mind.

“No. I haven’t seen her for a while. She isn’t answering her phone. Can we track her phone like Fitz’s?” He so far was staying calm, but she could see the panic seeping into his eyes. It wouldn’t take much for him to completely loose it.

‘Damn!’ Thought Nat. She’d been trying to avoid doing that, at least in front of Ward. She had a bad feeling what she was going to find. But she tapped on the computer again, starting the software. Reading the result she glanced quickly at Clint hoping Ward would miss it.

“Nat?” Of course he didn’t miss it.

“Her phone is off. Last location camp entrance.”

 

Ward nodded as if accepting this information, pacing backwards and forwards slightly. She winced slightly as he flung his fist into the wall. Coming to a standstill in front of him she grabbed his wrists to stop him throwing any more punches.

“Hey. Enough of this. We don’t know what happened yet. You need to keep it together. Hurting yourself won’t do anything.”

His breathing kept coming in small puffs but the slight shaking of his limb reduced slightly. When she was certain he had better control of himself she moved back to the computer to look at one final thing. Behind her she felt the air shift slightly as Clint positioned himself to keep an eye on Ward. When they’d first gone undercover she’d placed cameras on all their doors to track comings and goings. Maybe they could show something useful. It took her a few seconds to log on to the secure site where the footage was remotely sent, and a few more to locate this cabin’s footage. Pressing play she skipped through to the most recent footage. Her fears were confirmed as she watched a masked figure enter the cabin and leave a few minutes later carrying an unconscious Skye. Pausing the footage she turned to find Ward watching.

“So she’s been taken.”

Nat worried about his deceptively calm voice. She knew he wasn’t calm. If he was shouting at least she knew what he was going to do next. Like this he was unpredictable and dangerous.


	20. Chapter 20

Everything had a red tinge. He’d not noticed it until he was in too deep. It took all of his effort not to tear through everyone in front of him. Part of his brain told him that the only way to solve this was to fight, take everyone out and then he would get his teammates back. The trained part of his mind that the berserker rage didn’t control agreed with Coulson, it was best to let Nat and Clint interrogate John, the owner of the camp. It was probably best that they went if he got his hands on him he wasn’t sure he could control himself, beating him senseless would not help them find Fitz and Skye.

Coulson had watched the footage blankly as if he was unbelieving. May looked unconcerned but Ward recognised the slight clenching of her jaw. Tripp comforted Simmons as they stared at the footage, this time he willed it to be different. They all knew that this footage meant their worst fears had been confirmed. They currently only had one suspect. The owner of the camp, John Neill. It had to be him; he had the opportunity and motive, though they weren’t sure exactly what that was yet. All they knew was he was up to something. It had been decided that Clint and Nat would go interrogate him; they were the best at getting answers quickly.   
Even so Ward wasn’t happy to be left out. He wanted to be there, hearing everything first hand. It was his teammates, his rookie that had been taken. It was his job to do everything in his power to get them back. And he would get them back.   
Knowledge that the coms would relay everything being said wasn’t comforting. You couldn’t influence anything while just listening to it. The gentle touch on his shoulder wasn’t comforting; he knew Nat and Clint had his back. But right now he just wanted to hit things. Pacing outside helped; he couldn’t hurt any of his teammates out here. A broken hand would help Fitz or Skye either. The repetitive movement was calming, if you were moving fast enough no one could get you. 

Facing the forest he heard the boom as a door fell inwards, flinching slightly as his brain dragged up images of how good it would have been to be the one to do that. He needed to focus now, Clint and Nat were making their move, the rage was just a distraction he needed to tune out.  
“John Neill we need a word.” Clint growled. Whirring through the coms told Ward that they were in the office. No one had told him where John was located; probably fearing he would take off and demand justice. They were probably right.  
“How dare you? This is a private office, you need to…” Whatever they needed to do was suddenly cut off. If the gasping was any indication he the need of oxygen was greater than the need to object. Neither of the spies were known for their patience, especially when a team member was involved.  
“We know you’ve been up to no good. So how about you just come clean and tell us where it is?”  
“I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.” Ward couldn’t help the growl escape at the blatant lie.   
“I suggested you start thinking hard, otherwise things are going to get interesting for you.” Nat spoke for the first time, no need to put on a menacing voice.  
“Torture is illegal.” The man stammered, voice increasing in octave.  
“Oh I won’t torture you silly. You just accidently switch on one of my bites. I’m so silly leaving them lying around.”  
“I’ve done nothing wrong.” John’s voice squeaked.

Smacking his hand into the wall leaving an indent, Ward ignored the concerned look from Simmons as she watched him from the cabin. As he became aware he had walked away he was entering the office. Right now he didn’t care about their cover. Finding their teammates was much more important. A small man sat in the centre of the room, tied to his chair by his own tie. Moving to tower over the cowering man, he took a second to focus his thoughts before leaning down menacingly.  
“Talk!” Longer sentences took too much time right now.  
“I…I…” The bang of Ward’s hand against the desk stopped the stuttering.  
“Ok! The bank account details are in that top draw. It contains all the money I took. I swear I didn’t mean too. It just became so easy to skim some of the money out of the accounts.”  
Ward blinked at the man.  
“You were swindling your customers?” Clint asked. Not the answer they were looking for. Ward want to scream in frustration.   
“Yes! I’m so sorry. I didn’t think anyone would notice.” Apart from the slight shadiness about the guy, nobody had, but that wasn’t helpful right now.  
“What about the people you took?”  
“What people?”  
“The girl and the guy you kidnapped, never mind all the scientists that disappeared.”  
“I’ve nothing to do with that. I only deal with money. I don’t like people. Why would I kidnap anyone! It’s bad for business!” The wailing was beginning to get on Ward’s nerves.  
“NO!” Nat dragged him to the door as he took a step towards the cowering man.  
“He’s telling the trust Ward. Just look at him.” Ward glared but knew she was right. There was no way she could be fooled.   
“We’ll let the police deal with him.”  
Nodding in defeat he walked out of the office, he couldn’t stand to look at that man any longer. Hanging his head he didn’t notice Tripp standing in front of him until he almost walked into him.  
“We’ll find them man. She’s strong. You taught her well. Our girl’s a fighter, between her and Fitz I wouldn’t be surprised if they managed to escape.”  
******************************************

She came to on a hard surface, her aching back informed her. Before moving she took an inventory of what she had and any injuries. Surprisingly apart from smarting head she was uninjured. She suspected the uncomfortable object digging into her side was her phone, which was a plus. Shallow breaths came from nearby but everything else was silent. Blinking she saw she was lying looking at a basic simple ceiling. Sitting up gingerly she took in the simple bed beside her, a door behind her head, firmly barred, and a set of bars that ran the length of the room.  
“Skye! You’re awake.” Fitz reached through the bars, grasping her arm as he attempted to hug her.  
“Fitz! How did you get here?”  
“I was here before you. Erik and I watched as you were brought in.”  
“Erik, he’s here?”  
“Yeah. They took him when they brought you in. We think the other scientists are here.”

She examined the room, taking in everything she could. They needed to find a way to escape.   
“We tried to come up with a plan to escape but then Erik got taken.” Fitz commented as he watched her.   
“Any idea where we are?”  
“No but somewhere near the camp we think. From what we can tell we didn’t travel far.” She was going to ask more questions but she heard footsteps coming closer to the room. Quickly lying back down again making it look like she’d never regained consciousness. Even though one of her senses was blinded, literally, she had been trained by May and Ward not to rely on just sight. The echoing of the door against the wall didn’t hide the sound of two sets of footsteps. One set stumbled further into the room while the other paused at the edge of the room. Creaking echoed around the room as the door swung shut, she waited until she heard the footsteps retreat before sitting up.  
“Erik this is Skye. Skye, Dr Erik Selvig.”  
“Glad to see you’re awake.”  
“Nice to meet you Dr Selvig.”  
“Please call me Erik.”   
“Can you tell me what happened when you were taken out?”  
“Yeah. It was really strange. I was sat in front of a computer and just asked about my work. It was on a more basic level. I then had to explain some theories that I work with. Nothing top secret, it was like what you’d study at school.”  
“Weird. Hang on did you say you used a computer? Was there Wi-Fi?”  
“Yes. It was how I was talking to whoever was asking questions. He was quite intelligent actually.”  
“You said he. What makes you think that?”  
“Just the language used and the questions they ask. Does it matter?”  
“It might. I think I know where we are.” She quickly extracted her phone from where it had been stuffed.  
“I don’t think you’ll have signal.” Fitz interjected.  
“I know. They removed the sim card.” She waved the phone in his face.  
“So how does it help us?”  
“Because Erik told us there was Wi-Fi and I can hack anything.”  
“Still doesn’t really help us.”  
“If I can connect I can use the message app I created to talk to Ward while we were undercover.”  
“You…you… of course you were talking to Ward.”  
“Done!”  
“That was quick.”  
“Let’s just hope he checks his phone. The robot doesn’t like technology. Now shall we see if we can get out of here?”

After a quick discussion, Erik banged on the door.  
“Help! Help!”  
Skye was back on the floor; she was never going to complain about the bunks ever again. The plan was simple, and as she listened for footsteps coming closer he prayed it would work.  
************************************   
Tires squealed as the car careered around the corner, muffled swearing came from inside.  
“We can’t help them if we don’t get there alive.” Tripp diplomatically commented, ignoring the wince from Simmons as two wheels left the roads as they took another corner. Ward ignored the comments, focusing simply on getting to the destination as fast as possible.  
Five minutes ago he’d received the message from Skye. She thought she was being held at the nearby store. After the lead with John had not gone anywhere they had been unsure where to look next. He’d felt like banging his head against the wall. Skye’s message had given him something else to focus on. He could finally do something instead of sitting around like a lemon watching as the others chased down new leads. Coulson was following behind them in Lola but he’d quickly lost them as he barely slowed for corners. He’d been trained in response driving, they were in no danger. But if he got there just a few seconds quicker he might be able to prevent something terrible happening to Skye or Leo. His training and experience kept providing scenarios that could be happening to his teammates. He couldn’t stop his mind thinking of all the tortures they could be undergoing. His job as a specialist was to protect them from this.

Screeching to a halt outside the store they found it empty, with no lights on.   
“Tripp check inside. You know the layout. Simmons stay here. Nat and I will check around the back.” Ward ordered.  
Extracting his gun he strode around the back, ready to fire if he saw a threat. Nat covered his back as they moved forwards. As they rounded the corner Ward was faced with his worst nightmares. Beside a second building Skye stood with her hands raised in a non-threatening way. Across from her a middle-aged woman stood pointing a wavering gun at her. Normally Ward wouldn’t be greatly concerned, he’d taught her how to disarm a gun. But the gun waving around told him that the woman was a novice, the gun could go off by accident.   
“Hey. My name’s Skye. I believe you’re called Jenny. A friend mentioned you to me.”  
“How’d you know that? You need to go back inside.”  
“I can’t do that. I know you didn’t want to do this.”  
“You need to go back inside.”  
“You brought everyone to teach your son right.”  
“Leave Jamie out of this!” Jenny screamed. Ward considered tackling her but there was still a chance it could hit Skye. At least Fitz wasn’t in danger; he hoped he was somewhere safe.  
“I understand. You did everything you had to, to give him a good education.”  
“Nobody would teach him out here. He couldn’t go to school. I had to do something.”  
“I understand.”  
“All these scientist kept coming in. They could teach Jamie so much.”  
“So you ensured they would stay and teach him.”  
“I intended to let them go. Jamie just needed help, then he could go to university!”  
“Jenny. You did everything that you could for your son, but you need to let them go now.”  
“I… I..” Jenny cried the gun weaving all over the place. As Ward strode forward and disarmed her Skye pulled her into her arms, cradling her.  
“Fitz?” Ward barked.  
“Inside.” Skye pointed to the building behind her while rocking Jenny gently.  
Nat strode forward while Ward covered her from beside Skye. As she pulled the door open Fitz nearly toppled out clearly having been listening at the door.   
“Seriously.” Ward complained.  
“Ward! Thank god. We found the missing scientists.  
“So I heard. You ok?”  
“Fine. Though I do have a question for you.”  
“Oh?”  
“Why did you keep it a secret you and Skye were talking while we were undercover?”  
**************************  
Three hours later they’d finally got back to the bus. The police had dealt with the scientists, helping them find transport home. Jenny had been taken into custody with her son going to stay with his aunt. Skye could understand wanting to do anything within you’re power to help your child but kidnapping people was going a step too far.  
“Feeling better?” Nat stood on the threshold of her bunk watching as she towelled her hair. “It’s amazing what a shower can do.”  
“Yeah. I just glad to feel clean again.”  
“You did well today. You’re becoming an amazing agent.”  
“Thanks. Between May and Ward I’ve had really good SO’s.”  
“I meant to talk to you about that. You do know that as Ward is no longer your SO you don’t have to hide your relationship.”  
“What… how?”  
“I’m a spy. I’m paid to notice things. Besides it was fairly obvious.”  
“Has anyone else noticed?”  
“Not sure, didn’t really ask. I brought it up, as at some point you really need to talk to him about the time after he was revealed as Hydra. I know he still has issues with it. I hoped you might be able to help him through it.”  
“I’ll talk to him about it.” She promised.  
“Well I’d better go. Clint will be getting impatient. Leaving him and Erik alone for too long is a recipe for disaster. If you ever need anything give me a call.” Skye nodded taking the card Nat handed to her.

She finished drying her hair before heading down to the cargo hold where the rest of the team were gathered. As she reached the top of the stairs she watched as her boyfriend joked with Fitz. He seemed to have finally shook the anger from his system. Grinning mischievously she rand down the stairs and through her arms around his neck.  
“Skye?”  
Deciding not to respond, she pulled his head down and kissed him while the others looked on. Tripp and Fitz whooped as Simmons and May told the boys I told you so.   
“I got fed up of hiding.” Skye whispered against Ward’s lips, enjoying the smile that was spread across them.  
“We shouldn’t hide from family.” He murmured understanding her meaning.  
“Hang on.” Coulson broke in. Skye dropped her arms from around Ward’s neck, spinning so she was leaning against him.  
“Did everyone know about Skye and Ward?”  
“Yep.”  
“Of course.”  
“How could you miss it?” Simmons wondered.  
Skye blushed slightly at how all their family had seen through them.  
“It’s just like any father.” May commented. “If it involves his daughter and dating he’s oblivious.”   
********************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End. 
> 
> Thank you to everyone who followed, liked and left kudos on this fic. It was one of the first I ever wrote so thank you for sticking with me as I figured out how to actually write!

**Author's Note:**

> So I hope you like it. If anyone wants to give me suggestions or prompts please message me on here or find me on tumblr, its the same username. Please review. Also I'm sorry for any mistakes :-)


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